


Living the Nightmare

by flowerboy_11



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: (emotional) pain, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Fluff, Gore, Hurt/Comfort, Implied Cannibalism, M/M, Nohr | Conquest Route, Slow Burn, Suicide, everything you ask for and so many things you don't, there will be, you name it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-19
Updated: 2020-05-06
Packaged: 2020-05-14 23:08:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 23
Words: 77,569
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19283092
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flowerboy_11/pseuds/flowerboy_11
Summary: Takumi's driven to a suicide he doesn't remember by the malevolence possessing him. He wakes up with only a fraction of his memories of recent events intact, in a world dominated by noise, preoccupied people and gray everywhere. And then he runs into Leo of all people. What a stupid nightmare.Warning: Heavy Conquest path spoilers!Will update every first and third Wednesday of the month!





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Please be aware that this fic spoils important portions of the Conquest storyline, peppered with my own interpretations of the events, and falling fault to artistic license. Also note the rating and the warnings: There are reasons for them. I've always been a fan of gore and graphic violence (in fiction, of course), and this fic will not stay clear from graphic sex, either. Please continue reading at your own discretion.

Feelings are complex things. They are hard to put into words. They are abstract—they can’t be touched or shown to other people. Sometimes, when someone’s giddy with excitement or overwhelmed by sheer happiness, one says, “I can’t describe this feeling.”

Takumi can’t describe his feeling, either. The difference between that feeling of delight and Takumi’s is this: He knows there is something wrong with him, and he can’t tell anyone. The control he should have over his own body is faltering, running through his fingers like fine sand, escaping his grasp like a liquid rope. He’s been reduced to a passenger watching a stranger operate his body through his own eyes.

It is both a gradual change and it takes over Takumi suddenly, without warning, as he fights for Hoshido on the High Wall of Suzanoh. Takumi _knows_ something is up, has been up for a while, feels the alien presence in his body. And still he’s come to accept his more frequent outbursts of rage and hate as something that originates from him. That something else is to blame doesn’t even cross his mind until it’s too late. But who can blame him? How often do people get possessed outside of fairy tales and legends, outside of stories told at night around campfires to scare even the toughest of warriors, and outside of tales made up to frighten children into behaving?

Which isn’t to say monsters don’t exist, but possession sounds far-fetched even to him. But Takumi’s conviction is something this alien presence can only sneer at. Because He is resentment. He is sin. He is hate. He is betrayal. And He is so lost in his own circle of corruption that not a lot of Him is left. But what _is_ left is potent and destructive.

The core of Takumi himself, his most basic sense of consciousness, meanwhile, feels like its caught in a perpetual free fall. He’s drowning in a whirlpool of hate, loathing and abhorrence. He’s choking on the anger and rage made manifest. And when he reaches out for help, he only grasps air.

* * *

But let’s start at the beginning: It all boils down to that traitor, Corrin. It’s Corrin who’s abducted and groomed by King Garon of Nohr (in a ploy that costs Takumi’s father, Sumeragi, his life). It’s Corrin who comes back to Hoshido over a decade later, and it’s Corrin who disrupts their relative peace. Corrin’s back not even for a month when Mikoto dies, protecting—that’s right—Corrin with her life.

Takumi knew right from the start you couldn’t trust Corrin, and he turns out to have been right about everything. His prejudices against Nohrians run deep. But how can he help it if everything he’s ever thought about that filthy scum turns out to be true?

They are sadistic and selfish monsters, led by their hunger for glory, land and slave workers, leaving destruction and despair in their wake. They tear families apart by conquering and dividing up the land, driving borders between everyone in the process. They are not even above the rightfully forbidden magic—necromancy—and have the zombie-like Faceless do the dirtiest of work even the slaves are too precious for. Oh, and they serve as wonderful army fodder. If they’re Faceless are killed off for good, no one gives a flying fuck about them. And speaking of Faceless: Nohrian necromancers just _love_ to use the fallen soldiers from both sides of the battlefield as new Faceless food and fodder, as if these people hadn’t been, well, _people_ , with friends and family who cared deeply about them.

Takumi speaks from experience. Seeing discolored limbs dig free from their graves is one thing, but being on the battlefield is a wholly different experience. All too often Takumi has to watch one of his comrades fall in a bloody heap to the ground, raped of all grace by death. It’s a horrible sight to behold, even if he doesn’t know the soldiers’ names in question. He knows their faces. He knows what they looked like when they shared a joke or when they talked about their partners or children, about their passions and their plans for the coming years. And it’s all gone, just like this. And then the true horror sets in.

Faceless are not just killing because they’re made to but because they consider tearing people’s limbs off, sinking their stinking claws deep inside tender flesh and ripping it to shreds _fun_. The screams—Takumi will never forget the screams. Blood spurts everywhere. Sometimes the Faceless will feed on their prey, but just as often, a necromancer will instead resurrect the body. And create a new Faceless. Wearing the body of someone Takumi’s talked to not even an hour ago. And it’s up to him and the remainder of his army to kill them—it—again.

The thought alone is making him taste bile and suppress a violent shudder.

So how could Corrin, who’s lived with the Nohrians for over a decade and has to know all their dirty tricks and practices inside out, still choose them over the Hoshidans? Takumi can’t forgive this. He _won’t_ forgive this.

* * *

Azura deserves special mention as well.

Azura’s mother was the second wife of King Garon of Nohr. Which makes Azura a princess of Nohr. Which already speaks for itself, in Takumi’s book.

Because Corrin had been kidnapped by King Garon, Hoshido’s military strategist, Yukimura, came up with the ploy to kidnap Nohrian royalty as well and exchange the hostages. Long story short, it didn’t work out and Azura grew up in the Hoshidan court alongside Takumi and his _real_ siblings. Takumi always made sure to bite his tongue in the presence of his step-mom, Queen Mikoto, because she insisted on Azura becoming part of their royal family.

Admittedly, it wouldn’t have been too bad if it weren’t for one thing: Azura is a hypocrite.

Azura insisted on loving Hoshido. So much so that she wouldn’t return to Nohr given the choice. Granted, her mother died due to mysterious circumstances—and it’s certainly not above King Garon to kill his spouse to shut her up. And Azura never had any loving words to spare about King Garon, either.

After Corrin decided to side with Nohr in the war, Azura at first returned to Hoshido. This is something Takumi disagrees about with his brother: Whereas Ryoma still insists Azura’s intentions are sincere, Takumi could smell her reek of betrayal from twenty feet away. And he was not alone. Most Hoshidans were suspicious of her true intentions—was she acting as a spy on behalf of Nohr?—and if you ask Takumi, rightfully so. After all, she returned to the Nohrians after being captured and locked away by a faction of Hoshidan soldiers.

And, what’s more, she didn’t get locked up by them. Oh no, Azura is now part of the Nohrian army.

* * *

Nothing that matters is changing. Every single day, there’s at least one battle against the Nohrians Takumi has to oversee and participate in. And what’s more, the scum is driving the Hoshidan side back. It pains Takumi to fight on his home turf, to see the beautiful Hoshidan countryside spoilt by blood and death, to lose more and more ground to the inhumane people massacring his. And the confrontations with the portion of Nohr’s army led by none other than that traitor Corrin are the worst. At first they were fighting on different sides of the boder, at Port Dia, then at Cheve—where King Garon of Nohr killed Takumi’s father—followed by Izumo. Takumi’s archers are being pushed back East, and the destination of the Nohrian army is clear.

All too soon, they are fighting for the control over the Great Wall of Suzanoh. Subsequently, if Takumi and his soldiers—the core legion of the Hoshidan army, along with his retainers, Oboro and Hinata—are to lose this battle, then there will be nothing to stop the Nohrians from advancing onto the capital and Castle Shirasagi. Takumi must not fail.

Of course he spots traitorous Corrin in the midst of the Nohrians. As the Nohrian army advances, Takumi calls out to them from atop the fortress. “At long last. I’m glad you could make it, Corrin. Corrin of _Nohr_.” A smirk pulls at his lips. For all his hate, this is the moment he’d been waiting for—his chance at revenge. “Know that so long as there is a single breath in my boy, I will not let you pass. I mean that. You shall not enter out capital under any circumstances.” The smirk has fully formed by now, and the muscles in Takumi’s face are still contorting, distorting his grimace into a hideous grin. “Are you ready, my dear lost sibling? Today is the day you _die_! Even if I must give my life to achieve it, I will not fail. I _will_ kill you, Corrin!” Laughter rises in Takumi’s throat. “Prepare to die like the coward you are!”

In the midst of Corrin’s army Takumi spots blue hair. So Azura is here, too. Well, if this goes well, it’ll be two birds with one stone.

But it doesn’t go well. The battle itself turns into the worst mess Takumi has had the pleasure not only to witness, but be part of. He quickly loses track of his retainers because, foremost, he has to take care of himself. He bits his lip so hard he’s drawing blood, and the taste triggers something in him, makes him furious. He taps into his rage and accidentally grazes three of his own men and women with his arrows.

And everywhere he looks he sees death, hears death, smells death.

Blood soils the fortress’s floor and makes it slippery. There are enough people sitting and lying in the blood—some of them dead, some of them wounded but hanging on. Their clothes can’t soak all the blood up although they sure try their hardest. The people themselves are shrieking, screaming, howling for help or just as often for a mercy strike to end their suffering. Death doesn’t make them look peaceful. Their faces are still stretched into grimaces of agony—if they still have faces. Some of the fallen soldiers Takumi passes are beheaded, other are charred to black crisps by magic, and others still sport arrows from their eyes, their mouths, their ears. Sometimes, brains are pouring out alongside unimaginable amounts of blood.

The stench is just as bad as the sight. Death _reeks_. It’s not just the blood, it’s the muscles loosening the bowels’ contents. And even the people alive and fighting stink of sweat and piss. These people soil themselves are scare themselves literally shitless because they’re faced with death. So this might as well go hand in hand.

The only good thing seems to be the absence of necromancers and Faceless. Thank the dragons they decided not to accompany Corrin today.

Takumi takes careful steps towards his targets. He could slip in the blood, stumble over bodies, be overwhelmed by his senses screaming at him to get away. At the same time, he _wants_ this. They say both that revenge is sweet and payback is a bitch, and this is what he’ll show the Nohrian scum. “All allies of Nohr deserve nothing but the cold embrace of _death_!” he shouts at the top of his lungs. It comes out sounding more like a growl than anything, and he has to clear his raw throat afterward. But foremost his feelings are reserved for Corrin.

When they finally meet in the battlefield-turned-graveyard, Takumi bears his teeth in a feral grin. “I have waited too long for this moment. I have dreamt of nothing but ending you, and now the time has come! I shall cherish the sound of life leaving your body for all eternity. Do you remember what I told you Cheve? Do you?!” He started speaking at normal volume, but now his voice is booming across the few meters separating them.

Corrin’s already strained face hardens even more. “You said you would not rest until you killed me—made me pay for my sins.”

Takumi grins. At least there will be one thing Corrin got right. “That’s right. There’s no turning back now… not for me.” Takumi channels his Fujin Yumi’s power. A bowstring and an arrow appear out of thin air. “This is all I have left. For better or for worse, this will be our last meeting. It ends here.” He nocks the arrow. Wind is howling, Takumi’s hair flying in the sudden gust. “I made up my mind to kill you a long time ago, my forgotten sibling. I _will_ have revenge for Mother and all the Hoshidan lives you’ve ruined!”

He aims at Corrin who finally betrays emotion. It’s part incomprehension—how you can be _this_ stupid is beyond Takumi—and part sympathy. “Takumi… Brother…” Corrin’s eyes soften. Takumi grinds his teeth together. And lets the arrow fly. It’s repelled by the thick armor coating Corrin’s dragon form.

The battle itself passes in a flash. Corrin’s army didn’t suffer losses as severe as Takumi’s, and the disadvantage shows itself through an onslaught that causes Takumi to lose ground. Oboro and Hinata are nowhere to be seen, and Takumi tastes bile when he repeatedly shouts their names and they fail to report to him. Did the Nohrians _kill_ them?!

As much as Takumi fashions himself to be a one-man-army, he isn’t. He’s fast and knows how to recognize and parry common attacks, but simultaneous assaults from swords, lances, axes, arrows, magic and a friggin’ _dragon_ are just too much to bear at once. He gets up the first two times he falls, but his strength is leaving his body too fast. He’s finished.

Corrin’s back in human form and holds out an arm to the side to stop the Nohrians’ attack. Takumi’s now one of the many sitting in a pool of blood, and he doesn’t even know how much of it is his own. “Your battle is over, Takumi,” Corrin says in a steady voice.

Takumi tries to get up and slips, landing face-first in the blood. He pulls his face up, blood dripping from his chin. “ _No_! This can’t be… how it ends…” He struggles back up onto his knees. Someone on the Nohrian side is snickering at his display.

Corrin continues nonplussed. “The Nohrian army has seized control of the Great Wall of Suzanoh. All remaining soldiers will be taken prisoner. That includes you.”

“Dammit!” Takumi shouts. It sounds like a growl again, and this time he doesn’t clear his pulsing throat. “Coward!” He points a finger at Corrin. “I hope you rot in a pit of eternal torment for this!”

Leo walks up to Corrin, his horse standing in the background, hesitates and closes a few more steps of the distance between Corrin and Takumi. “My, what a rude fellow.” Leo focuses on Takumi and rolls his eyes. “You should be grateful we’re allowing you to live. You may be our prisoner, but we will not treat you cruelly. If you _behave_ ,” a smirk tugs at Leo’s lips and if Takumi had the strength, he would show the literal bastard he knows how to knock someone else’s teeth out with a mean hook just for the superiority emanating from that little smirk, “we may even let you see your sister, Princess Sakura.”

Takumi’s heart misses a beat. And another. “ _What_?! You’ve captured Sakura, too? You _monsters_!” Sakura captured. Oboro and Hinata either that or _dead_. And Mikoto dead for a while now. All at the hands of Corrin.

Corrin speaks up again. “I know how you must be feeling, Takumi, but please calm yourself.” Takumi laughs hollowly. What do these demons know? “We must bind and imprison you before Father arrives.” What a wonderful word to call a murderer who’s not even related to you and whose twisted politics you’re approving of. For who you’re getting blood on your hands. Takumi chokes on his own laughter. “Please, just put your hands and—”

“Don’t touch me!” Takumi crawls backwards and heaves himself up onto his feet. “Don’t you dare lay your filthy Nohrian hands on me!”

“Takumi?”

“I mean it! Don’t come near me!” He tries to channel the Fujin Yumi again but his lack of strength makes this an impossible feat. “If it wasn’t for you, Corrin, none of these awful things would have happend to Hoshido! No one would have had to die!” Takumi squares his shoulders and makes a point of looking straight into Corrin’s eyes. He tries again to remember them from his childhood but draws another blank. But Ryoma and Hinoka remember. And Mikoto… How happy she was to be finally reunited with her long-lost child! “We could have been a family! Why did you go back to Nohr?! Why?” Corrin is frozen. “ _Tell me why_!” Corrin still doesn’t speak up. “Why didn’t you choose us?! Your _real_ family! Why?!” A tear runs down the grime and blood on his face.

Corrin finally finds a voice. “Takumi! I…”

Takumi’s voice cracks, and the tears begin to flow in earnest. He can’t suppress the sobs rising to his throat, either. “Don’t you speak my name, traitor!” That’s right. Corrin is still a traitor. A shudder goes through Takumi, and his tears stop as suddenly as they’ve started. No. Not now. _No_!

Takumi tries to fall back to his knees and finds he can’t do more than force a stumble. He tries to hold onto something, anything, but his hands only twitch a little and then go limp. He opens his mouth to scream, and the words that spill out are not even his own.

“It doesn’t matter. Nothing matters—not anymore.” His hands finally obey him. He holds them over his mouth, smelling and tasting the blood his gloves have soaked in.

“Takumi…” Corrin closes the distance between them. “Why would you say that?”

Takumi doesn’t want them to, but his hands spread. He’s giggling between his fingers before drawing his hands away. His tongue laps at the blood left behind on his face. He wants to vomit but instead he laughs. He turns around and looks down from the fortress wall. “The time is now… I can still save Hoshido even without the blade of salvation…” Turning back to the Nohrian army, he cocks his head and grins. His teeth are stained with blood. “You can’t keep me prisoner… See?” He points at the vastness behind the wall. “Do you see?!” Takumi’s eyes widen in realization and he forces them shut. No. This can’t be happening. But whatever is controlling him yanks the chain back. His eyes are opened wider than ever, and something wet tickles down his cheeks. Tears? More blood? He can’t tell. “You shouldn’t have left me a way… a way to escape…”

But… what if Takumi can stop this thing? What if it can fly or teleport and tries to force him to do its bidding after having gotten to safety? Takumi yanks at the chain himself. He knows _he_ can’t fly or teleport. If he falls down the wall, he’ll be done for. And so will this _thing_. If his body’s dead, what can it animate? This is it!

Takumi gathers all his remaining strength and willpower and forces his body to listen to _him_. He looks at the Nohrians but thinks only of Sakura as his lips form a silent “I’m sorry”. He lets himself fall backwards. There’s nothing stopping his fall.

The impact hurts like a bitch. But only for a second.


	2. Chapter 1

Takumi has never sucked in air as harshly before, and it makes him cough. He’s struggling to keep the air in his lungs, gasping once, twice, before finally settling into a more regular breathing pattern.

He opens his eyes and doesn’t like what he sees. He must be lying on the ground on his back—he’s still numb all over and can’t feel anything of worth—because he’s looking up into unfamiliar faces. Takumi’s eyes dart from one face to the next. Some of these people look concerned. Others are moving their mouths but no sound reaches Takumi’s ears. Behind the strangers, Takumi can make out a cloudy afternoon sky.

A loud noise followed by rubbery screeching breaks the silence and makes Takumi’s heart jump. He covers his ears with his hands. Something’s off. They’re not protected by his leather gloves anymore? Takumi sits up and looks down his hands to find them as bare as they felt against his ears. He then notices the weird sleeves on his arms and the tight pants he’s wearing. His ponytail seems to be intact, although Takumi fails to find the adorning ribbons with his fingers. It might just be the stress.

But… his clothes _are_ similar to the ones of the strangers still gawking at him. He can make out voices now. What a hassle.

He closes his eyes again and lays back down.

What a shitty dream.

* * *

 

When he opens his eyes again, nothing has changed. The same people against the same backdrop are still looking down at him, their mouths are still moving, loud noises Takumi can’t comprehend still come from right behind him. This… might not be a dream after all. Takumi searches the strangers’ faces for a familiar one and can’t find anything in them that sparks recognition. He understands their words individually but can’t make sense of what they’re trying to tell him.

Heart racing, Takumi pushes up on his elbows and gets up. The world is tilting beneath his feet and he stumbles a few steps to the left. The only reason he doesn’t fall is a teenage boy’s sleeve he latches and holds onto until the spinning stops. “Hey, watch it!”

Stupid punk. Takumi lets go and sways again. He looks back at the concerned strangers. They’re approaching him. Creeping closer, ever closer, too close. Takumi pushes against them. “Leave me alone,” he manages, and it’s only then he realizes they’re speaking Nohrian. No wonder everything here is so screwed up! This is a nightmare all right. They’re making him have it. “Leave me the fuck alone!”

Turning around, Takumi finds the source of all the noise—and the bad smell he only notices now and can’t ignore anymore. He crosses the street without looking, causing several of these ugly, stinking metal husks to scream at him with their terrible voices. Takumi’s heart jumps at the sudden noise and he himself jolts a few inches into the air.

He increases his pace and slips into a small alleyway between two gigantic houses built from… metal? This is a nightmare after all, so what does it matter? And he probably doesn’t have time to think. The strangers might be following him, and Takumi doesn’t want to find out what they will do to him once they reach him. He turns right, takes a left, another left, loses himself quickly in the maze these small spaces between the buildings form. Takumi looks behind him to check if anyone’s kept pace with him when he slams right into someone.

He looks up to mutter an unfelt apology, but the words are stuck in his throat. This isn’t a stranger, a face he doesn’t recognize. No. This is Leo. Leo with tight-fitting black clothes, with boots that only reach up half his shins, with nails painted black, with a black choker around his neck, with kohl around his eyes, with a black ring stuck in his lip. He looks different, but there’s no doubt it’s him. His frown can’t be faked.

Taking a step back, Takumi also sees Elise standing to Leo’s right. At first glance, she looks just like she did a few moments ago on the battlefield sans the grime and blood, but on second glance there’s something about her that’s just as off as Leo. There’s more color variety in her clothes—black with pink and white accents is still better than black only—and she’s donned her dress in favor of pants. There are hair clips in her hair, still worn in her trademark pigtails, both in flower and in skull shapes. And she’s holding bags made from a weird, glossy material in her left hand.

“Leo? Elise?” Takumi more rasps than says. His head is still spinning and his headache is getting worse. This nightmare is taking it’s toll on him. And these two are two of the last people on this and any other planet out there he wants to see. So he does the logical thing and turns around. Thankfully, no one’s followed him here.

“Who are you?” Elise asks. Takumi ignores her. Or no, he has a better idea. He flips her and her scum brother off while he walks away.

Two pairs of heels klick on the hard, gray ground behind him. Leo’s voice calls out, “Wait.”

Takumi doesn’t stop but slows down a little. He turns his head to see Leo almost having caught up to him, Elise hard on his heels. Takumi turns his head back around and increases his walking speed. He neither wants to get into a fistfight over something as stupid as this nor does he want to run into another Nohrian asshole. Burying his hands in the front pockets of this… thing he’s wearing, his fingers brush against something that feels oddly familiar. He’ll have to check it out once he’s shaken Elise and Leo off. They’re still following him by the sound of it. “What do _you_ want?” Takumi demands, scrunching up his shoulders. Despite his attempts to shake them off—both with his increased walking speed and with his attitude—Leo reaches Takumi. Well, he didn’t even know where he was going. But Leo, for some reason, puts a hand on Takumi’s shoulder. Oh, no, you don’t. Takumi turns around so fast his stupid ponytail almost ends up smacking himself in the face. “Keep your dirty hands off me, you son of a bitch!”

Leo takes his hand off Takumi’s shoulder, raises both his hands in a defensive gesture and takes a step back for good measure. Elise catches up to them. “Who are you?” she repeats herself.

Takumi rolls his eyes. “Don’t play dumb. This might be the stupidest dream I’ve ever had but that doesn’t excuse you from recognizing me.”

Leo exchanges a glance with Elise and frowns. Looking back at Takumi, he says, “This isn’t a dream. This is the real world.”

Elise nods in agreement. “If you won’t tell us your name, you can maybe explain instead how you come to know ours?”

Takumi snorts and crosses his arms. “Seems I have to repeat myself as well: Don’t play dumb. I know what you two are playing at.” He narrows his eyes. “You two and everyone on your side! This is an elaborate prank designed to make me the laughingstock of you filthy Nohrians for generations to come! Now that you’ve taken me prisoner just like… like…” He swallows the lump in his throat. They should know who he means. Better to keep channeling his anger and continue. “You make me think I’m dreaming with your corrupted magic, and you’re trying to confuse me with it and your shitty customs! And,” Takumi opens his eyes again and glares at Elise, then at Leo, “it stinks right up to the moon here!” He points at the sky. “Where are you keeping me? In a filthy underground prison cell?”

Elise looks worried. “Do you need help?”

“No.” Takumi shifts his gaze to Leo who glares daggers at him. Takumi makes sure to glare back. “I don’t need anyone’s help, especially not scummy Nohrians’.”

Elise and Leo exchange a glance. Leo’s still glaring (or… glaring again) when he rests his eyes on Takumi once more. “Did you escape from a psychiatric hospital or what’s going on?”

“At least I wasn’t raised in one, not like you two bloodthirsty—”

“I’m going to call the police.” Leo slips something small from his pants pocket and taps on it.

To both his and Takumi’s astonishment, Elise takes it from him. “Stop it! Something’s not right here.” Without handing Leo his gadget back, she steps up to Takumi. Who has to find out the hard way he’s hardly taller than her (and he only comes to this deduction because she’s wearing heels and looks the same height as him with them). She holds up three fingers and counts her points off on them. “We don’t know who you are, what’s going on, nor what you mean by ‘no-ran’.”

Does she mean ‘Nohrian’? Why would she mangle the word so badly? Takumi supposed they all have pride in their heritage. He looks into Elise’s eyes, _really_ looks, and is met by her glare of genuine confusion. And Leo looks just like her. They aren’t acting. What does this mean? And… Does it even matter if they’re acting or not? Takumi isn’t about to trust a pair of people who look and act just like his mortal enemies.

“Do you need help of some sort?” Leo asks and snaps Takumi back into the here and now. His expression and voice have softened, and he actually sounds concerned.

“No. I said I don’t.” He clenches his fists. “ _If_ I need help, and that’s a big if, I am _not_ going to ask a Nohrian for it.”

“Elise?” Leo turns to his sister who in turn turns her head towards Leo. Takumi clenches his hands even harder so that his fingernails leave impressions on his palms. How dare Leo ignore him just like that? “Are you carrying a piece of paper and perhaps a pen in your purse?”

“I think so. Let me check.” Elise rummages through the only hard-looking bag she’s carrying and hands Leo the items he’s asked for.

Leo jots down something on the slip of paper and hands it to Takumi. “If you want to talk.” He looks at what Leo’s written down: a string of numbers of which he doesn’t know what they signify or represent. But he’s not losing his face, his dignity, in front of these two.

Takumi crumples the piece of paper, shoves it down the pocket of his shirt, and walks off without thanking them. He doesn’t even understand what this number is supposed to mean. When Takumi looks behind him after a couple of turns in the narrow alleyway, he doesn’t see either Leo nor Elise. Good.

* * *

 

Takumi walks around aimlessly for a while. He exists the alleyway and is back in more open space, but he can see none of the people who were staring at him earlier. Making sure to cover some distance between himself and the place where he ran into Leo and Elise, Takumi sits down on an uncomfortable metal bench and starts people watching.

He needs to gather intelligence, and he doesn’t like to mingle anyway. Or talk to more of these Nohrians. If he can avoid it, he will. Anyway, he learns he should avoid the loud, stinking and _fast_ metal things in the streets. He understands how the red and green lights at street crossings work. He gets up again because he’ll also need to know how to navigate this place and where everything is, most importantly a place to get food. If this is a nightmare—and Takumi’s conviction has been crumbling ever since his run-in with Elise and Leo—then it’s a damn shitty one for making him hungry.

Sitting down on what could either be a monument or a statue of some sort, or an actual place to sit down on (there’s no way to tell with Nohrian ideas of ‘art’) Takumi digs through his pants pockets—he already knows what’s in his shirt’s. He pulls out a fake-leather wallet with cards and money inside. He disregards the cards—what purpose they can serve is beyond him. But money, especially in the form of coins, is a very welcome sight. Takumi doesn’t know what he’s holding in his hands is worth, but he’ll find out soon enough. His stomach is rumbling.

After putting the money back where he found it, Takumi gets up. The sun is already setting when he enters the nearest place that smells like food. It turns out to be a bakery that is, for some reason, still producing freshly baked goods even though the day is coming to an end. But the smell is enticing and so good Takumi’s mouth is watering and he enters it without a second thought.

From the inside, it doesn’t look too different from one in Hoshido—it’s just bigger and there is more metal and glass and the mystic material here. And there’s a big menu. Takumi points at something on it that looks edible (but with a name he can’t pronounce) and, with no idea how much his money is worth, puts it all on the counter and hopes it’ll cover his order. “Is this enough?”

The woman behind the counter serving him gives him an odd look. “Yes.” She takes only a small fraction of the coins and presents Takumi with a slice of bread with lettuce on it.

“Thank you.” Takumi pockets his money, takes his bread and leaves. He walks as far away from the bakery as he dares. He hopes Nohrian food doesn’t taste as badly as he’s heard before he gingerly takes a bite out of his purchase. And it doesn’t! Takumi scarfs down the bread and is disappointed it’s gone so fast. It was really good.

As the cold and dark intensify, Takumi finds himself at a crossroads: He can either try to find a quiet place for himself or approach strangers and ask them if there’s a hotel in the vicinity he can stay at. At least, Nohrians have clearly invested in oil lamps or magic lamps or however the lights here are operated, and walking around town at night doesn’t prove to be a problem.

Asking passers-by where he can stay the night is something Takumi does only because he has to. The first two hotels Takumi tries are already full to the brim, and the third turns out to be way too expensive for him with the apparently little money he has. Takumi shivers at the memory of the look the man at the reception of this particular, expensive hotel gave him. “Is this supposed to be a joke?” he asked. One of his eyes even looked like it twitched at the vain effort to keep the incredulity from showing.

Takumi buries his hands in his pockets, trying to put as much as distance between the hotel and himself as he can. He will under no circumstances venture there again. His fingers brush against the note Leo wrote him.

No.

He doesn’t even know what kind of weird spell he’s put on there, or what else this nonsensical string of digits is supposed to be. And spending one night outside can’t be too hard. It seems to be late summer or early fall judging by the state of the trees planted in isolation among the tall buildings and stinking streets, so the temperatures might not drop too harshly.

After a few minutes of walking, Takumi enters a park. There are more trees here, and they cast eery shadows everywhere. The lack of lamps and therefore light, combined with the absence of people here at this time of the day is discomforting, to say the least. Would Takumi feel any safer with someone around? Takumi snorts. Sure. Safe in a pool of Nohrians. He won’t venture out of the park again just to surround himself with potential criminals.

However, the lack of illumination is still taking its toll on Takumi. He’s jumping at indistinct shadows hopefully cast by nothing more frightening than tree branches swaying in the breeze. He looks behind him regularly to check no one’s following him until his shins make contact with something hard and he stumbles over a hard object. Feeling for the shape of the hard object he can’t even make out the outline of, he finds it to be a park bench.

Takumi’s shins hurt. And it’s become cold. And now he doesn’t know if he can’t find his way back anywhere—he’s ventured into the park quite a ways and the darkness is total and creeps him out. He can only see his hands if he holds them up to his face. Wrapping his arms around himself and rubbing his hands along his arms to make both the chill and the dread go away, Takumi figures there’s not much he can lose by staying here for the night.

Sighing, he sheds the last of his princely dignity. He has to take a leak, and bad. Fumbling for these stupid Nohrian pants’ fly, he hopefully pisses on the ground and not on the bench, then struggles to close pants again. He huddles into his clothes like a turtle and, feeling for the shape of it, lies down on the hard and unrelenting surface of the park bench.

Takumi squeezes his eyes shut and drifts off to sleep after straining his ears for sounds he can’t attribute to anything in the dark. But exhaustion gets the better of him eventually.

His nightmares chase him. Perpetual free falls are terrible if you wait for an impact that won’t come.

* * *

 

Takumi wishes he hadn’t when he wakes up the following day at the crack of dawn. His hands are hurting from the cold, fingers swollen and red, and he rubs them against each other in a vain attempt to heat them up. His hair is a clammy mess Takumi has no chance of combing through with his stiff fingers, so he ties it into a bun (and this takes a lot of time if your fingers only signal pain and nothing else) in the hope he’ll end up looking somewhat presentable. And his mouth feels exactly what it feels like if you didn’t get the chance to brush your teeth—dirty and sour, with an unappetizing film over your teeth. The lower half of Takumi’s face is scratchy with faint stubble.

Hiding behind a tree so no one will run into him and see him do it, Takumi takes another piss. His stomach is empty and his throat is dry. He needs to find his way back to town to alleviate this. Thankfully, as he looks around, Takumi finds the park much easier to navigate when not basked in total darkness.

By the time Takumi reaches town, the sun has already risen behind a thick blankets of clouds. Instead of wasting his remaining energy to find a place he might even consider okay, he takes a chance and wanders into the first bakery he sees.

The chime announces his arrival and one of the people behind the counter greet him. “Good morning.”

“Good morning,” Takumi replies in a mumble. The woman who greeted him looks at him with a look between curiosity and disgust. Great. This tell him all he needs to know about his state of appearance.

“How can I help you?”

Takumi points at the menu, putting all his money on the counter. He hopes the pastries he buys will last him for at least half the day, if not the whole. “And can I have a glass of water?”

“Yes, sure.”

Takumi gulps it down as soon as it’s presented to him. The woman meanwhile stuffs his purchases inside brown paper bags. Takumi’s gaze slides around the venue and he decides to stay so he can warm up. He buys another glass of water before settling down on one of the tables and watching the town come to life out of the window.

His money is running out fast.

* * *

 

Takumi spends his day wandering around town more or less aimlessly, only resting when his feet start to protest. He wants to know his way around in case he’s stuck here for a while, although something is already nagging at him to let his pride be. How will he survive on the little money he has? And worse, how will he make anyone understand that he flat-out doesn’t know what so many of these things that are apparently normal for the people here are and work?

Then there is what he felt in his shirt pocket the day before. He’s afraid to check because if his suspicions about what lurks in there prove true, then he is fucked beyond belief. Oh, and he’s afraid of losing the change money he’s stuck in there. And Leo’s rotten note.

Takumi’s been thinking about it, and he can’t make sense of a string of digits no matter how he thinks about it. Which brings him back to what he’s been mulling over earlier: He doesn’t understand jack about this world. He’s come across some advertisements (he thinks) with long numbers on them as well, but he’s not about to ask anyone of these people what they are supposed to mean. He doesn’t know if they can be trusted, and anyway, he’s sick of the funny looks people are shooting him.

And speaking of the people here, Takumi has yet to run into another familiar face. He can only hope he eventually does, and that it’s a friendly one.

A drop splatters down next to Takumi onto the grey ground, turning it a darker shade. Another follows soon after, then Takumi feels one on his nose. Looking up, he finds the sky has darkened and the clouds seem to be filled to the brim and ready to leak. Takumi grabs his paper bags—he doubts they’re going to survive the oncoming rain—and seeks shelter back in a bakery, the only type of place he has any connection to and trust in so far.

The people inside, on not just the ones behind the counter, frown when he takes out the rest of the food he’s purchased in the morning out of the paper bags. Well, fuck them. He orders a glass of water again because the rain outside reminded Takumi his throat is killing him. And his stomach? Isn’t too happy with only being served Nohrian pastries all the time… but rummaging through his pocket doesn’t make the proposition of having to buy food all the time any more attractive. The glass of water almost made him broke (and fuck the Nohrians for making something that is pouring from the sky for free literally six feet to his right so expensive). Takumi takes out his wallet and looks through it again. The cards don’t tell him anything, but he remembers there being paper money. And he’s right—he’s holding two bills in his hand with single digit fives printed on them. Takumi doubts he’s holding a fortune in his hands.

The rain hasn’t let up by the time Takumi’s ushered out of the bakery by the personnel. He hasn’t noticed the other customers leaving, and he’s the last one to go. It’s already dark outside, which he also failed to notice. Has he really just been sitting in the bakery all day, brooding?

Takumi pulls up the hood from his shirt and starts walking. The feeble hood is no use against the continuos downpour and soon enough, Takumi is drenched. He flees into a building that’s still open and hopes won’t close for the next few hours, if not the night, so he can at least get dry again. It’s loud inside, and it smells of people having been up all day without a wash. But what can Takumi say about himself? He vaguely feels like shit and the glimpses of his reflection he’s caught passing shop windows assure him he looks just as bad, if not worse.

The background noise passing for music in this place is horrendous but at least the people leave him alone. Takumi exchanges one of the bills from his wallet for a whole bottle of water and a glass to drink it from.

Sitting down at a lone table in one corner, Takumi weighs his options against each other. The stupid rain won’t let him crash on a park bench again, but despite not doing a lot, he’s worn out and tired. After finishing his bottle (he won’t let his precious money go to waste), Takumi decides to take a chance and closes his eyes, head resting on his arms. There’s only one thing he’s afraid to lose, and it can’t look like much of value to the people here.

* * *

 

He’s running. The ground is a blur as his legs pump him across the afternoon forest floor, going faster, ever faster. His boots make no sound because his steps are so light. It’s like he’s flying, soaring. And the feeling is elating. It’s exhilarating.

But he’s not here for fun.

A sound to his left makes him stop. Something’s stepped on a tree branch, making it snap. A grin forms on Takumi’s face, the muscles pulling it wider and wider until all his teeth are exposed. There it is. His prey.

Takumi closes his eyes, concentrates on the sound, gauges the distance. His nose twitches for the smell. He doesn’t know why he has this ability, but he does. He can track by scent like a bloodhound. He just knows all of a sudden. And he will use this ability to its fullest.

At first it’s hard to single out his prey. There are so many conflicting smells in the forest coming from plants and animals alike. But every single one is unmistakable, unique. And so is his prey’s.

Starting off again, steps light as a feather, Takumi advances onto his target. His mouth is watering. The scent is becoming stronger—he’s closing in. Leaves rustle, steps become audible, a blur of something brown dodges and turns in-between the trees. Takumi reaches for his bow while he’s still running, draws back the magically appearing string with the just as magic arrow already in his hand, aims, and lets go.

The deer lets out a feeble scream as it collapses. Flocks of birds take to the skies and leaves rustle in every direction as all other sentient life flees.

But something’s not right. Takumi tries to look at his bow. The arrow wasn’t made of light. His features fight on his face, confusion losing to absolute delight.

He steps up to the deer, makes sure it’s really dead. Then he gets on his knees, channels one of the Fujin Yumi’s arrows and hacks away at the corpse. Blood spills up into his face, but Takumi doesn’t even blink make sure it keeps out of his eyes. His gloves are soon soiled.

And something’s wrong. The arrow should glow white and blue, not suck in all light in a black and purple aura.

But there are more important matters to attend to. Abandoning the arrow in favor of tearing the deer’s skin apart with his hands where he broke it, Takumi burrows his face in the blood and flesh.

His heart is beating fast against his ribcage, and Takumi knows it’s not exhaustion, it’s excitement. He laps at the blood caking his lips, pulls out the liver and the heart of the dead animal to savor them in the sunlight spilling through the tree branches, breaks some of the deer’s ribs off with ease to hack away at its neck. The skull would make a fine trophy, even though it doesn’t have antlers. Takumi breaches himself with his knees buried in the blood-stained mud of the forest floor to just rip off the stupid head of this damn thing with his hands.

This isn’t right. Why does he do these things? Why _can_ he do these things?

The cervical vertebrae give in with a sickening crunch that should make his stomach churn but only fills it with more butterflies from excitement. He rips off the deer’s head with its eyes glazed over and its tongue hanging out of its mouth. He’ll have to remove these parts before they attract worms and flies. And he knows just the way he will.

Licking at his lips, Takumi tastes the deer’s blood again. Mhmmm.

* * *

 

Takumi jolts awake. He’s sitting in an unfamiliar place and his heart is doing summersaults. But the music, the stink and his spilled water soon attack his senses and he knows he’s in this Nohrian bar place. Thank the dragons the scenes earlier were just a nightmare!

But waking up doesn’t bring the relief it’s supposed to. Takumi is still tired out of his mind, it’s still dark outside, and the rain still hasn’t let up judging by the wet streaks on the windows. Takumi looks around. There are still people up and about in here, happily chatting away, some even eaten. His stomach rumbles. One of the bartenders is shooting Takumi an unfriendly look. Sighing, Takumi empties his water bottle (no point in letting that go to waste), then looks for something indicating a bathroom.

If the stink was bad in the bar itself, it’s nothing compared to the reek of piss and shit in here. At least it looks clean although Takumi could’ve done without the suggesting grafitti on the stall doors. After relieving himself, Takumi makes a beeline straight for the exit. His ears are hurting from the constant blare in there anyway.

Where to go, though? Takumi pulls up his hood again only to be drenched in a few minutes of walking straight ahead. He should come out somewhere. Eventually, he finds shelter from the rain under a bridge. There are occupied tents and mattresses there, so this seems to be a popular spot with homeless people.

Great. Takumi is homeless. It only sinks in now how far he’s fallen from his princedom.

Takumi hopes the homeless still awake won’t try to strike up a conversation with him, but everyone minds there own business. No one even stares or looks interested in him. Takumi lies down on the hard, wet floor under the bridge, and yes, the wetness is creeping up here as well. His clothes and hair and hands get considerably more dirty and Takumi wishes he’d just taken a chance and holed up in the bar bathroom stall.

It’s cold out here. Body shaking, teeth chittering, Takumi squeezes his eyes shut and hopes for sleep’s sweet release. Preferably dreamless. He keeps his eyes shut like a good little boy even when he’s sure a rat is sniffing at him. Ew. It takes a while for him to drift off to sleep, but eventually, he does.

* * *

 

The deer head weighs a lot, but Takumi’s strong. He just fed.

There are shouts behind him as he strolls away from the corpse. He stops and turns to look behind him. Takumi’s left a trail of blood behind him, and where the trail stops, his boots still left unmistakable imprints on the soft forest floor. What a pity.

It only takes a minute for his pursuers to appear in-between the trees and another to catch up to him. Sighing with a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, Takumi sets his trophy on the ground and reaches for his bow. This’ll be fun, but also a waste.

He knocks back an arrow, aims and shoots true. The man falls to the ground, his useless armor pierced easily by the arrow leaking darkness. The other man stops in his tracks. Takumi waits to see what he does, bow and arrow already ready for the next strike. The man turns around to flee. Takumi will have none of that and makes sure the man will have more time to think about his actions while he’s dying an agonizingly slow death.

Takumi picks up the deer head again and continues on his way. He’s just fed so he can’t make use of the dead humans. What a waste.

What a pity.

* * *

 

Someone’s shaking him. Or, no, not quite. Someone’s got their hands on him, and Takumi cracks open his eyes. A teenage boy, face red with rashes and pimples, has his hands down Takumi’s shirt pocket.

Takumi lunges at the teenager. “Hey! What the fuck are you doing?!”

The teenager pulls his hands out of Takumi’s pocket and makes a run for it. Takumi’s punch doesn’t connect and he swears. After struggling to get up onto his feet, Takumi makes after the thief. The rain has since stopped, but the sky is still cloudy and the ground wet. At least it’s light out.

Takumi slips and falls. He can catch himself somewhat with his hands, but it still hurts, and the hard surface isn’t exactly soothing to his palms. He pushes himself up again and walks with a limp for a few steps. Not only his palms but his knees, too, hurt from the fall.

While still dashing (or trying to dash) after the thief, Takumi remembers to check what still is there in his pockets. His fingers brush against his one certainty he is not going insane in his shirt pocket, and he also digs out a single coin and the note from Leo. The rest is gone. The wallet is still there in Takumi’s pants pocket, but it’s not much use to him with these weird cards and the single coin he still has in cash. Well. Fuck. “Fuck!”

Takumi stops—he won’t catch the thief like this anyway, and at least, he didn’t steal the one important thing. But now Takumi’s out of money so he’s down to either starving or begging now. Or, perhaps, he can avoid social interaction and humility somewhat by digging through trash… This might turn out to be the better solution, anyway, seeing as he probably stinks to high heaven, looks like he slept in a swamp and doesn’t trust these people anyway.

Takumi doesn’t even reach out to touch his hair which is still staying tied in a bun somehow, but he brushes the back of one hand against his face. It’s grimy and the stubble from the day before grew in even more. He can’t go anywhere near people, much less masses of them, looking like this. So instead of venturing back into town, Takumi stays on the town limits and approaches every trash can he comes across.

The problem with most public trash cans, Takumi finds out soon enough, is that they don’t come with a lied, and whatever people threw in there is soaked. And who wants to eat soggy bread or… whatever the fuck the things in the trash can are supposed to be? They looks so… artificial. And they sure don’t look like they should be consumed soaked, Takumi decides as he pulls out a half-eaten cup of… well, something.

He finally comes across some lidded trash cans, feet already sore from walking all day in these shitty Nohrian shoes. A small smile tugs at Takumi’s lips as he eagerly opens the lid, only to find out these trash cans are filled with paper or glass, respectively.

Heaving a ragged sigh, Takumi sits down and leans against one of these trash cans to rest his feet. His stomach is contracting and hurting—he’s not just hungry, he wants to eat something _warm_ for a change. And let’s not talk about his sore, dry throat. Tears flood Takumi’s eyes. He doesn’t want to wipe at them with his grimy hands and filthy clothes, so he lets them run freely and leave streaks on his dirty face. He can’t go on like this.

The only hope out Takumi has is Leo’s note.

Swallowing the last of his pride, Takumi gets up and approaches the busier parts of town again. Most people he passes look unfriendly and preoccupied—typically Nohrian—and Takumi stops to search the faces he sees for someone familiar, or at least someone that looks like they won’t walk out on him due to his looks and smell.

Eventually, Takumi takes in a deep breath, heart hammering against his chest, and walks up to a woman in her mid-thirties with an open enough face for him to try and talk to her. “Excuse me,” he says, and the woman turns and looks in his direction. Her face doesn’t betray any emotion. Well enough. Takumi pulls out the note from Leo and holds it out to the woman. “Can you help me with this?”

The woman doesn’t spare him another glance as she walks away from him. Her pace is brisk enough for Takumi to get the message. A lump forms in his throat and he swallows it down. Maybe he’ll have more luck with the next one…

Takumi seeks out another woman, this one perhaps ten years younger than the one before. “Hello.” Instead of showing her the note, Takumi waits for a response. He tries to smile but knows it’s going to look fake.

But the woman smiles back, although her smile doesn’t reach her eyes. “Hello.”

“I, uh, need help.”

The woman looks him up and down, her smile turning upside-down into a frown. “I don’t have any money.”

 _Try me._ Takumi shakes his head and takes out the note. He grits his teeth. “This was given to me in case I need help. Someone else will help me, although I have to reach him first.” Takumi shows the note to the woman so she can read it.

She takes it and looks over it closely. Takumi prays to the Dawn Dragon she knows what these digits are supposed to mean. The woman takes out a pad made from metal and glass. It changes what it displays rapidly. The woman looks up at Takumi, still frowning. “I don’t have a lot of time, so please make it quick.” She looks back onto the pad, her fingers tapping against it, then holds it out to Takumi.

It beeps. Takumi gingerly takes it. He doesn’t want to get this thing dirty. It beeps again. And again. Then comes Leo’s voice, sounding grouchy. “Who is this?”

Takumi almost lets the pad fall. What kind of sorcery is this?! But he also doesn’t want to look like he doesn’t know what’s going on, so he cradles the thing carefully and holds it closer to his face.

Leo sighs exasperatedly. “I’m going to hang up now.”

Whatever this means, it sounds bad. “Wait!” Takumi yells.

“Yes?”

“I’m… I’m the guy who ran into you two days ago. You gave me this number in case…” Takumi swallows. In case of what, actually? Takumi can’t remember.

“Ah, yes. I’ll come and get you. Where are you right now?”

Takumi looks around, turns around, takes a whole panorama view of where he is located. There are no signs he can see anywhere. “I’m at… this looks like a plaza of some—”

“It’s called Amity Square,” the woman interjects.

“Amity Square.”

“Thank you. I’ll be there to pick you up in about, hmmm, 40 minutes. Wait right where you are.”

“I will.”

The pad starts beeping rapidly. Takumi guesses this is what ‘hanging up’ means, and now that Leo is disconnected, Takumi hands the pad back to the woman.

“Thanks.” Her nose is scrunched up. She takes a tissue out of her purse and wipes at the pad.

“I’ll have to thank _you_.” Takumi bows a little.

“You’re welcome.” The woman looks back at him. “I’ll have to go now. Good luck.” And she hikes off. Her face and her words have spoken two different stories.

Takumi looks around again. There’s a small fountain without any water in it even though it rained recently. He leans against it with his back and sits down on the pebbles it’s built on. Not having anything to do, he watches the people bustling by and the pigeons picking at the ground. It’s boring. His stomach is cramping, and Takumi holds it, shaking from the cold. He closes his eyes and counts to two thousand, then opens them again. He studies his shoes. They were blue and white on his first day here, but now they look a darker shade of blue, brown and grey. One of the shoelaces is loose. Takumi bends over to tie it when he notices two sets of legs walking towards him.

Looking up, Takumi sees Leo and Camilla approaching him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd love to hear your thoughts, so how about leaving a comment?
> 
> The next update will go live on July 3rd!


	3. Chapter 2

Great.

Leo couldn’t have come alone, no, he had to bring his sister, the one that makes Takumi shiver involuntarily. So now both of them have something to laugh at.

Takumi grits his teeth. His legs feel shaky and he doesn’t want to get up. Watching Leo and Camilla approach has to be invitation enough for them.

Leo’s outfit is similar to the one he wore two days ago: black and skinny. Camilla is more open about her choice of colors, wearing a white and red dress that compliments both her purse and her heels. With them, she’s just as tall as Leo. Now Takumi really doesn’t want to get up.

When they come to a stop in front of him, Leo says, “Hey.”

“Hi,” Takumi rasps. It’s hard to maintain eye contact.

Pointing at his sister, Leo asks, “Do you know her name as well?”

“It’s Camilla.”

Leo turns to look at Camilla. “See?”

Camilla, however, has her eyes trained on Takumi. Up close, she looks even closer to how Takumi remembers her from his world, with her purple hair covering her left eye. Up close, her heels look like she uses them to stomp on people, and from what he’s seen in his world, it’s not hard to imagine. And, well, cleavage. At least she’s covered it up. Takumi raises his chin to look her in the face. “Oh my,” she says, “did you sleep in a dumpster or what happened to you?”

Takumi rolls his eyes. His cheeks burn from embarrassment. It’s bad enough he looks (and reeks) like he does, but having someone comment on it? Having his _enemies_ comment on it? The ones who are the only ones likely to help him out of this mess? A dilemma! “I spent three days without real food, without shelter, without a bath. I’ve been robbed this morning. I’m cold all over.” His voice cracks and Takumi takes a deep breath. He will _not_ cry in front of these two. “I’m hungry and thirsty and I’m out of options.”

“Ah, so I’m to be the last resort.” Leo hums, then continues. “I can give you food, shelter, a hot bath—for a price.”

Takumi grits his teeth. “What do you want?” he more hisses than asks.

“Information.”

Okay… If Takumi really isn’t stuck in a Nohrian trap, then this might be okay. Of course, it depends on what Leo wants to know exactly, but he won’t know if Takumi lies. “That’s it?”

“Yes. If you agree, we’ll take you home and make sure you’re treated like a proper guest.”

“That’s… a generous offer.”

“Mhm. Don’t take it for granted.”

“I won’t.” And Takumi will only trust Leo as far as he can throw him.

Leo turns to Camilla. “Can he ride your car in his, ah, current condition? I didn’t expect it to be so severe.”

Well, no thanks to you, prick! Did Leo forget Takumi is in hearing range or does Leo think he’s stupid?

Camilla says, “This isn’t how I envisioned him looking, either.” She turns to Takumi and winks. “You can wash my car in exchange for the service once you’re free.”

Takumi doesn’t even know what a ‘car’ is. Leo sighs and says, “If it’s really going to be as bad as you expect it to be, I will take care of it.” Looking at Takumi, Leo adds, “Follow us.”

Takumi reluctantly gets up, the weakness from not having eaten properly for the last two days making his legs shakier than the presence of two Nohrians seeing him as undignified as possible alone evoked. He has to hurry to catch up to Leo and especially Camilla stalking off.

“What’s your name?” Leo asks.

Right. He doesn’t know. “Takumi.”

Camilla smiles. “I like the sound. ‘Takumi’. Where does it come from?”

“It’s Hoshidan.”

“‘Hoshidan’?”

“Yes.”

“From Hoshida?” Camilla takes out a funny-looking key.

“Hoshido.” Takumi balls his fists. How dare they shit over everything?!

“Where is that?” Camilla pushes a button on the key—something Takumi’s never seen before—and orange lights at the front of one of the reeking carriages made from metal and glass—a car, it turns out to be—flash two times. Camilla’s car is sleek and black. If it were an animal, it would be a panther. Or a wyvern, come to think of it…

Takumi speaks so low he doesn’t expect anyone to hear his answer. “Does it matter?” Yeah, does it? Probably not.

Camilla doesn’t seem to notice—or care—and neither does Leo. Camilla takes the seat behind the wheel installed in the inside of the car while Leo opens a door for the back row. “Takumi, you can sit here.” Takumi scowls and gets inside. “You need to buckle up.”

Takumi raises an eyebrow at him. There’s no point in pretending anymore. “I don’t understand how this works, all right?”

“All right…?” Leo leans over him, nose scrunched up in thinly disguised disgust, and straps Takumi onto the backseat. “Please stay like this until we tell you it’s safe to get out of the car.”

“Okay…”

Leo closes the door next to Takumi, walks around the car and takes the seat next to Camilla. She’s been watching through the mirror installed over the front window. “Shouldn’t we take Takumi to the hospital instead?” Great. They’re not speaking with him anymore, but rather about him.

“No, we’ll take him to my place.”

Camilla starts the car, causing Takumi to yelp. Sure, he’s seen other carriages—no, cars—but he doesn’t know how they work or how freaky it feels to be moving in one. Something’s coming up from his stomach, and he forces it down again. He can’t afford to throw up what little he’s eaten.

And the Nohrians don’t notice his discomfort. What did he expect? Leo keeps talking as if nothing’s happened. “If Takumi’s suffering from more than what is expected after a few days on the streets, we can still take him there. But something about him is just not right. Elise said so, too, when he ran into us.” Leo’s hand moves to his chin as if he’s in deep thought. “I want answers. He knows our names, but I don’t think he’s a stalker. Or has a lot of criminal potential.”

Takumi clears his throat. Ouch. That hurts and wasn’t worth it. “You know I can hear you.”

Camilla laughs. It sounds rich and not acted, to give her some credit. “It’s not like we said anything bad about you.”

Takumi rolls his eyes. He replays what Leo said in his head and he didn’t even say he’s dirty and stinks. Stupid Nohrians.

“If you have problems with cars, do you know what phones are?” Leo asks.

“No.” Takumi closes his eyes. The scenery passing by outside his window is taking its toll on him.

“How did you call me, then?”

“I asked passers-by for help. A woman eventually called you for me.”

“Ah, so that wasn’t your number.” Leo takes out one of the sleek pads—a phone, apparently—and taps around on it before slipping it back into a front pocket of his pants. “Are you okay?” he asks, concern in his voice.

“I’m fine.”

“You look like you’re in pain.”

Takumi groans. “I said I’m fine.”

“Suit yourself.” Takumi cracks an eye open. Leo is turning back around to watch the street through the front window.

“Get along, you two,” Camilla chides.

If ‘getting along’ means passing the remainder of the car ride in silence only broken by Camilla turning on weird-sounding music at some point, then they get along splendidly. Takumi sighs with relief when Camilla shuts off whatever powers the car. Opening his eyes again, he sees they indeed have stopped. Leo’s already at his door and helps him with the bet again, but he doesn’t offer to pull him out. That’s just as well.

Takumi heaves himself up by the car frame and stumbles out in an effort to keep his balance. “I’m sick of this moving contraption of black magic,” he mutters under his breath. Stupid Nohrians… Looking up, he finds Leo looking at him with a raised eyebrow, but he keeps his mouth shut.

Having regained his composure, Takumi looks around. Camilla parked the car in front of a white house with at least five stories and a slanted roof. It looks similar to the other houses in the vicinity, although none of them are built exactly the same way.

“Follow me,” Leo says and leads the way inside. Camilla is right behind him and Takumi trails after her, up two flights of stairs, and tumbles into an apartment. “This is my place. Please take off your shoes.”

Takumi gets down on one knee and pulls at the shoelace. It’s so grimy it’s stuck and Takumi struggles to slip his feet out of the shoes any way they will. He sets them next to Camilla’s heels. When Takumi gets back up again, Camilla is nowhere to be seen.

“The second door on your right is the bathroom,” Leo explains once Takumi’s back on his feet. He’s pretty sure his socks were once white but now they’ve taken on various colors Takumi associates with filth. Leo snaps his fingers in front of his face. “Takumi?”

Takumi jumps a few inches and looks at Leo. “Y-yes?”

“This is the bathroom.” Leo points at a door down the hall. “Come with me.”

Takumi follows him and takes a look around inside while Leo vanishes to who knows where. There are a couple of shelves, some housing towels, some with doors. There’s a toilet looking similar to the one in the bar albeit much, much cleaner, a sink and a little square room with a glass sliding door. Takumi steps up to this extra room and takes a closer look. There’s a drain in the floor and a metal contraption on the wall.

“Takumi?” Takumi turns around. Leo stands in the door frame with clothing draped over his arms. “I brought you freshly washed clothes to change into once you’re clean.”

“Whose are they?”

“Mine. I doubt they’ll fit perfectly but they’ll have to make do for now.” Leo sets the clothes on the toilet lid. Good thing it’s clean. “The towels are stacked on this shelf, and you can find a comb and a razor in here.” Leo first points to the towel rack Takumi’s already spotted, then slides open a drawer underneath the mirror cabinet that hangs over the sink. “There should also be a spare toothbrush here somewhere…” Leo rummages around the drawer and retrieves everything he mentioned. He sets all the items on the edge of the sink. “You can find soap and shampoo on the support in the shower.”

Takumi nods. “Okay.” He doesn’t want to look stupid and ask what a shower is, but he guesses it’s the miniature room with the drain. What else could it be?

“I’ll leave you alone now. If you need anything, yell.”

“I will.” He won’t.

Leo smiles a little and turns to leave. Before stepping out into the hall, however, he turns back around. “Ah, and please don’t lock the door. I don’t live alone and someone might want to use the bathroom.”

As soon as Leo leaves Takumi to his own devices and closes the door behind him, Takumi locks the door from the inside. He won’t have anyone walk in on him.

Takumi takes out all of his few belongings and places them near the door, so he can’t miss them once he’s finished getting cleaned up. Peeling his dirty clothes off (and yes, he _does_ sniff on his socks, and he wishes he didn’t) comes as a relief but his reflection in the mirror doesn’t. The stubble that’s grown in so far makes him look older than his years, and it’s greasy with dirt. There’s even a smear of soil on his forehead! And his hair is clumping together and looking worse than a rat’s nest. Flakes of dirt are stuck in it and it takes an awful lot of time and patience to comb it out. And it’s so greasy! Ugh!

His mouth feels so sour Takumi has to breathe against the palm of his hand and test his breath. It’s never been this bad. He grimaces at the mirror to check if everything in there still looks all right, and it does, but the smell betrays the true condition of his oral hygiene. Takumi takes his time to rinse his mouth properly, and the water on his tongue is the most wonderful sensation he’s ever felt. Or felt in the last three days. Water has never tasted so good to him! Head held between the water tap and the sink, greedily drinks as much as he wants—it doesn’t stop. It doesn’t. These pipes must be enchanted.

Time to brush his teeth. Takumi doesn’t remember which of these toothbrushes is the one he’s supposed to use. Before he uses anyone else’s on accident, and they all look to be in mint condition to him, he decides his fingers will have to make do. First, he makes sure to wash his hands three times with masses of soap, and he cleans his fingernails until they’re as white as they will get. At least Takumi’s pretty sure toothpaste is supposed to clean the teeth. The result is sub-par, but at least the filthy taste on his tongue has been replaced by fresh mint. The rest he’ll get to in the bathtub.

Wait.

There’s no bathtub in this room.

But there’s this little extra room with the sliding glass door. Takumi steps in there and tries the water tap. Water gushes out of the hose mounted on the wall, and sprinkles onto him. He yelps. It’s freezing! Playing around with the faucets, however, shows that the pipes are enchanted in another way as well—the water just comes out of the pipes hot. After two tries, Takumi has the hose in his hand and can point it wherever he needs water.

The hot water is a blessing and the soap and shampoo—soap for the hair, apparently—work extremely well for Nohrian products. When the water flows down his hair, washing the last of the soap away, Takumi feels _good_ for the first time since he woke up in this world two days ago. He might even have moaned a little at the sensation.

One he’s done in the shower and turned off the wonderful water, Takumi gets dressed. These are Leo’s clothes… Takumi holds them up and sniffs at them as if that would give him some kind of clue, but they just smell fresh and not like anything he associates with that jerk. The clothes are a little big on him, but they make do. Takumi’s covered now, and he almost feels fresh.

The last things he needs to do are shaving away the stubble before brushing out his hair. He rummages around the shelves for shaving cream but he’s suspicious of the bottle containing it. Before he makes an utter fool out of himself, Takumi shaves with water only. He’ll rather end up with a nick on his chin than being the laughingstock of the Nohrians. And it works! No nicks. His skin feels a little irritated from the razor, but that’ll pass.

Despite the shower, his hair is still a mess and Takumi needs at least ten minutes of working the comb through it until he’s satisfied there are no more knots or tangles in it. He makes sure to take a piss and wash his hands again before shoving his belongings in the pockets offered by Leo’s clothing, only taking care with the one thing he’s fond of.

Unlocking the door, Takumi finds Camilla and Leo waiting just outside of it, like they’re about to jump him. Leo crosses his arms. He’s frowning. “I told you not to lock the door.”

“Maybe I’m self-conscious.”

Leo huffs. He takes a quick peak inside the bathroom, puts Takumi’s old clothes in the hamper Takumi somehow didn’t spot and washes his hands. How meticulous. Takumi rolls his eyes.

“You don’t have to be,” Camilla says with a twinkle in her visible eye. “You clean up nice.”

Takumi makes sure his voice sounds flat and not like he could possibly mean it. “Uh, thanks.” Camilla’s pun is cringe-worthy. And the way she looks like she’s already planning something with him makes Takumi shiver.

He looks back at Leo who’s back in the hall. “Before I’m going to ask you a few things I’d very much like to know, I’ll give you a quick tour of the apartment.”

Leo starts down the hall and Takumi is about to fall into step beside him when Camilla says, “Leo, don’t you want to introduce yourself first?”

Leo stops in his tracks. “Oh, right.” He turns around to face Takumi. “I’m a history major. I share this apartment with two friends.” Camilla laughs, but Leo ignores her. “This is my room,” he jabs his thumb at a closed door across the bathroom, “and these two are my friends’ rooms. Don’t enter them under any circumstances.” One of the doors is full with little pictures with no discernable order to them, and the other one is just blank. Leo’s looks like the entrance to the lair of a vampire.

“Trust me, I don’t _want_ to go in there.”

Leo smirks. “Good.” He leads Takumi into a rather spacey room. Camilla’s since ignored Leo’s warning to not just enter rooms and enters his, closing the door behind her. Well, that’s sibling privilege for you, Takumi guesses. “This is the living room, and here,” he opens the last door in the hall, “is the kitchen.”

Takumi peeks inside and almost balks. Niles is in the kitchen, wearing a brown leather jacket over a white shirt with a childish print on it, and blue pants. He leans his head to the side to shoot him and Leo a quick, mildly interested look while hacking a carrot for what smells like broth. Mhmmm… Takumi’s mouth waters and his stomach growls.

Niles turns towards him, mustering him. He wears an eyepatch over his right eye and looks so much like Takumi remembers him sans the clothes—like Leo and his sisters. A sly grin forms on Niles’s face. “Don’t worry, I’ll personally feed you.”

Takumi’s face grows hot. “I’m not interested.” He turns away and almost runs into Leo again, who’s standing just behind him.

“You heard him,” Leo says, nodding at Niles. He turns towards Takumi. “Come with me. We’ll eat later. The food isn’t ready yet, anyway.”

Takumi follows Leo into his room. Camilla is already waiting for them, sitting on Leo's bed and mustering her nails. They look like claws, painted blood-red. Takumi’s eyes dart to Leo’s hands. Normal nails. Good.

Taking a closer look at Leo’s bed, Takumi finds the sheets gloomy-looking. Leo has a skull-shaped cushion in his bed. Across the room, there’s a candle holder looking like a skull as well, and on his desk is yet _another_ skull whose purpose Takumi can’t begin to fathom. Oh, and it’s _green_. Several gloomy posters and postcards, sometimes with people on them, sometimes looking like advertisements for funeral homes, adorn the walls, and so is a black-and-white photograph of a horse. It looks kind of similar to the one Leo rides where Takumi comes from, if Takumi squeezes his eyes just so and imagines it’s wearing the stupid skull get-up with the horns. Turning his head up a bit, Takumi hopes the gigantic spider in its web stuck in the corner of one wall is just Leo’s idea of nice decoration and not an actual, living thing—it doesn’t appear to be one, at any rate. Otherwise, Leo’s room looks immaculate: Abundances of books are stacked in shelves, his desk is free of anything that could disturb it (sans the green skull), and Takumi bets if he were to open one of the doors to Leo’s closet or the cabinet sitting under a mirror, every piece would have its respective place in there. Long story short, Leo’s room looks as if he’s expected visitors today.

Takumi knows he couldn’t have competed with this level of cleanliness, and it nags at him. Clenching and unclenching his fists, he tries to abandon the feeling from his system. But then Leo locks the door, leans against it and crosses his arms. Panic starts flooding Takumi. “What’s going on?”

Camilla clears her throat. Takumi looks over to her, then back to Leo when he says, “It’s _my_ turn now. I said I’d give you shelter in return for information.”

“Yes.”

“So please uphold your end of our agreement as well. As you have seen, I can give you what I promised.”

Takumi swallows. “Yes…”

“Then please tell me what the hell’s going on. You know our names but don’t appear to be a stalker. We’ve talked,” he nods to Camilla, “and we’re both certain we’ve never seen you before.”

Camilla nods. “So is Elise.”

“Right. So, what about the man chopping vegetables in the kitchen? Can you name him as well?”

Takumi swallows again. “Niles.”

Leo and Camilla exchange a look. “Why aren’t I surprised?” Leo asks and smiles grimly. “My other roommate is called Owain, although we call him Odin.” Takumi should’ve seen it coming way back when Leo said he’s not living alone. Of _course_ his roommates turn out to be Niles and Odin! “I see you expected this, too.”

“When you said his name, I realized I knew all along you were going to live with Niles and Odin.”

“How?”

Takumi worries his bottom lip. There’s not much he can lose, can he? “I woke up here shortly before I ran into you. There are a lot of things in this deeprealm—”

“Pardon me?” Leo interjects.

“This, uh, reality or world or whatever. There are a lot of thing I don’t know from home. Like cars, or how to speak with someone long distance.” Takumi runs a hand through his hair. It’s drying slowly. “But I recognized you and Elise the instant I saw you. You look a little different from what you look like where I come from.” Takumi taps the right side of his bottom lip, causing Leo to raise an eyebrow and touch his ring. “Yes, this thing is new. And your clothes are different but you still look and act mostly the same as I remember from my home. You hang around with the same people.”

Takumi’s eyes flicker to Camilla, than to Leo to gauge their reactions. Their faces, however, betray nothing. “Go on,” Leo urges.

“All right. So the last thing I remember before waking up here two days ago is fighting in battle. At home.” Takumi wipes at his eyes. “But I can’t remember how it ended, if it did at all.”

“And we’re supposed to believe you?” Leo asks.

“Oh, that’s harsh.” Camilla twirls her hair around a finger. “It’s a very interesting story, if you ask me.”

Leo turns towards his sister. “It doesn’t mean anything.”

“You think he made it all up?”

“Yeah? Anyone could’ve come up with some—”

“I have proof.” Leo’s and Camilla’s eyes are immediately on him. Takumi’s heart begins to race. He pulls his one hope, his one certainty out of the pockets. The bowstring of his Fujin Yumi is giving off a faint, blue glow, the string itself white light. “At home, I wield a holy weapon. It channels wind magic and is forged and imbued with it.” His eyes move from Leo’s and Camilla’s open mouths towards the bowstring. Well, at least it’s impressive, to judge by the Nohrians’ expressions. “I only have the bow itself. When I want to shoot, I can will the string and the arrows into being. But… when I woke up here I found out I’ve been only left with this.”

He looks up again. Leo and Camilla have since closed their mouths but still looked spooked. Whoops. But kinda serves them right, too. “Can I touch it?” Camilla asks.

“No. Only the one chosen by the Fujin Yumi—the bow—can wield it.” To be honest, Takumi doesn’t know if anyone else can touch the bowstring. But he is afraid it could disappear for good, and anyway, he doesn’t want her Nohrian cooties on it.

“What a pity.”

Leo speaks up again. “Can you channel the rest of the bow?”

“I don’t think so. Usually, the string appears and the bow is already there, not the other way around.”

“Well, try.”

“I—I will.” Takumi draws the string tight between his two hands and closes his eyes. He calls on his bow. But when he opens them again, nothing has happened. He tries again, harder. His head pulses with a headache formed by his concentration. And still, nothing’s happened. “It doesn’t work.” Swallowing down the lump forming in his throat, Takumi stuffs the bowstring back down his pockets.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd love hearing your thoughts, so again, why not leave a comment?
> 
> The next chapter will go live on July 17!


	4. Chapter 3

A knock on the door causes Leo to jump a little, Takumi to freeze completely, and Camilla to laugh at the display. At the very least, it jerks Takumi back into the here and now so hard he remembers he doesn’t want to end up crying in front of Nohrians.

Leo steps away from his door and unlocks it. “Yes?”

Niles stands in the hall. He doesn’t come in, but he makes sure to smile at everyone present in Leo’s room. “Dinner’s ready.” He turns around and walks away again.

Camilla laughs. Takumi can’t tell if it’s the suddenly broken tension or if she genuinely thinks this moment is funny.

“We should sit down and eat first,” Leo says. “We can talk more afterwards.”

Takumi’s stomach growls, causing his cheeks to flare up again. He can smell the broth if he concentrates on it. Takumi’s _starving_ and he doesn’t want to resist this offer, even if Niles might have poisoned the food, and even if he’s eating together with people he considers his enemies.

Camilla gets up from Leo’s bed. “Thank you for the offer, but I’ll rather eat at home.”

Takumi looks at her as she leaves the room, unsure. She knows his secret now as well. Leo escorts her to the door. Takumi doesn’t accompany them but can still her them in the hall. “Thank you for helping today.”

“It’s nothing! Everything for my baby brother.”

“Stop calling me that already.” Camilla laughs heartily at this. “Get home well.”

“I will. Take care of your new… hm, what should we call him?”

“He’s a guest.”

“That’s no fun.” The door opens and closes.

Leo returns to his room. “Takumi,” he says, “I saw your concern. I assure you you can trust us. Camilla won’t let slip anything.” Takumi frowns. He won’t trust her just like this—she wears the face of his enemy. “Come on, let’s eat. You’re hungry.”

Takumi’s cheeks color again. Leo turns around without another word and Takumi’s glad he’s spared from saying anything. He follows Leo into the kitchen.

“Howdy,” Niles greets them.

“Hey.” Leo sets the table. Takumi sits down at and looks around the kitchen. It’s orderly but there are a lot of things he doesn’t understand. Or that just look different? There’s a stove for sure, although it seems to be magic-powered. Pots and pans hang ready for use at a wall. A basket full of fruit serve to make a welcoming impression, and there are all kinds of dried herbs and spices. Following their trail, Takumi sees a door leading out to a small balcony on which a maximum of two slender people could fit. On the balcony, there are a couple of pots with fresh herbs sticking out… and ripe tomatoes. …Okay.

“Do you want to do me the honor and introduce yourself?” Niles asks. Takumi’s head snaps to him. Niles is grinning at him.

“Uh, I’m Takumi.”

“Niles.” He holds out a hand. Takumi stares at it. Niles makes a small gesture in his direction, and Takumi takes the hand offered. It’s hot and it feels weird. As soon as he can, Takumi pulls his hand back. Niles doesn’t seem to care. “So, you two know each other how?”

The question is directed at him. Leo is filling three bowls with the broth and placing these on the table. Spoons are already waiting to be used. Takumi’s stomach growls again. “We ran into each other.”

“You like making it mysterious, eh?” But, giving credit where credit is due, Niles doesn’t pry any more. “I hope my broth is good enough to satisfy your no question high standards.” He’s still grinning.

“Thank you for cooking today,” Leo says. Takumi mutters a quick Hoshidan prayer under his breath. Neither Niles nor Leo seem to notice. Good. He doesn’t want to explain.

Niles inclines his head towards Leo. “No biggie. So, how was your day? Apart from your no doubt excellent guest. You cut your long day short for him.”

Takumi tunes out the conversation. Leo’s only talking about school anyway. Sipping at the broth, then eating whole spoonfuls, Takumi has to admit that it tastes as good as it smells. He refills his bowl two times. Has he been eating this fast or has he just tuned out everything but the wonderful taste?

When Takumi pays attention to the conversation at the table again, Leo asks Niles, “Do you know when Odin will be back?”

“Nope.” Niles looks over towards Takumi. His eye crinkles at the corner. So at least one person noted Takumi’s mental absence. “I do have one more question concerning you.” Niles points with his spoon at Takumi. “Leo, are you cheating on Brünhild with him?”

Takumi slows his eating speed so he doesn’t gag. He doesn’t want to give anyone the impression he is fazed by that statement, although he is. Him and Leo _dating_?! Never!

“It’s not like this,” Leo says before Takumi swallows down another mouthful. “We’re…” He shrugs.

Niles snorts but doesn’t press them. “We’re running low on soap for the kitchen.”

“Noted. Is there anything else we need?”

* * *

After having stocked their dishes in something called a dishwasher, which apparently cleans dishes for you automatically, Takumi and Leo retire to Leo’s room. While Takumi sits down on his bed, Leo closes the door behind him.

“So, what do you want?” Leo asks.

Takumi looks up. Leo is approaching him. “Huh?”

Leo stops, standing in front of Takumi. “Do you want to find a way back to your old life, or will you try and fit in in this world instead?”

What a stupid question! Takumi doesn’t even have to think about this. “Of course I want to go back!” Even if he’s not sure what he’ll come back to. Even if his family has always been rather negligent of him apart from Sakura and Mikoto, and Mikoto’s dead while Sakura’s been captured by the Nohrians. Even if he’d had to watch a lot of what he’s fond of fall apart recently—his country, his siblings, his retainers Oboro and Hinata. Even if, speaking of his retainers, he doesn’t know if they’re still alive. Even if, recently, he always has this dream-like feeling he has when he thinks of home, and he is free from in this world as long as he’s awake.

“Then we had better come up with a plan.” Leo sits down at his desk, swiveling around in his chair to face Takumi. “Can you please reiterate everything you remember?”

“I already told you everything.”

“Tell me again.” Leo takes a notepad and a pen from his desk and sets them on his leg.

“My country’s at war. I’m part of the army. We were fighting a battle on a fortress on Hoshidan land—”

“You’re Hoshidan, right?”

“I am. We are being invaded.” Takumi swallows. “So like I was telling you earlier, this is the last thing I remember before waking up in this world. I’ve been wandering around, ran into you and Elise, tried unsuccessfully to get by on my own, asked a woman if she knew what to do with the number you gave me after two days of struggling, and then you and Camilla came to pick me up. You know the rest.”

Leo scribbles something down onto his notepad while Takumi’s speaking. He doesn’t stop after Takumi’s finished, and Takumi can’t be bothered to check if Leo is a slow writer or if he’s taking further notes on how to tackle this problem. And Leo doesn’t say anything about the list. “And you seem to be stuck.”

“Yes. At first I thought this is either a nightmare or a prank, but now I’m convinced this is real.”

“How so?”

“This feels too real.” Takumi looks down at his hands. There are the nicks he has from operating a bow, and a scar on his right palm tells of a fall and the subsequent ungraceful skidding along the ground on his hands when he was a boy. This is his body. No doubt about it. “This looks too real to be an illusion. There’s too much thought put into everything—these car things, for example. If anyone can come up with them in theory and pack them into a dream of some sort, or an illusion, then why aren’t people using them in real life?” And then there’s the nightmares. Having a nightmare in a nightmare does happen, but this has gone on too long. Takumi’s dreams aren’t this elaborate.

Leo inclines his head while listening. “Well, this _is_ real so it’s good to know we finally seem to be on the same page.”

Takumi rolls his eyes. What a way to remind him of his run-in with Leo and Elise. “Yeah.”

“I’m trying to figure out how I can help you find your way back home. Do you know if you’ll just disappear or how does this work?”

“I don’t even know how or why I ended up here in the first place.”

Leo nods. “There isn’t a feeling? A connection to your home?”

“I thought you were one. Because I recognize you.”

“You weren’t exactly nice, though. We aren’t friends in your world, are we?”

Takumi almost laughs at this. It’s not quite as ridiculous as Niles’s earlier implication, but him, choosing to spend time with Leo? No way. “No, we’re not. We don’t particularly like each other.”

“I figured. What about Elise? Camilla? Niles?”

Takumi shakes his head. “No.”

“Then I’d advice you to stay near me as long as we’re looking for a way for you to go back.” Leo holds out a hand and counts his points off his fingers. “You only see people you don’t care for, if you recognize anyone here at all. I’m here to help you, even if I have to earn your trust first. I’m going to work for it. Secondly, you are puzzled at a long of things. Your world must really be different from this one if you don’t know cars, phones, TVs, computers, and everything else people interact with on a regular, oftentimes daily basis. Furthermore, you don’t seem to have any money on you, or at least no idea how to use it. You don’t have anywhere else to stay judging from your appearance earlier today. You probably only own one set of clothes.”

Takumi winces. Way to show him how helpless he really is. And, like Leo said, he has to trust someone if he wants to get anywhere. His stunt on his own was a major failure. “You’re right. On all accounts.”

“Mhm. Let’s make another deal. I’m going to take you in under the condition of you doing some chores in the household.”

Takumi smiles grimly. “This is too easy.”

Leo raises an eyebrow, frowning. “Is it?”

“You can’t offer to help me just like this and expect nothing in return.”

“But I do. Chores. We will discuss them further tomorrow.”

Takumi opens his mouth, closes it, opens it again. He’s at a loss for words. Tears shoot into his eyes. Sure, he can think of better alternatives than staying with Leo, but this is only a temporary arrangement, and _this_ Leo doesn’t seem like he wants to maim and mangle him given the chance. And Takumi would get food and hot water and be clean and have fresh clothes… It really does sound too good to be true.

Is everything okay?” Leo asks, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

“Y-yes.” Takumi takes deep breath. Once he finds his tongue again, he asks, “Where exactly would I stay?”

“You can either sleep on a mattress on the floor in my room, or on the communal sofa. It’s Odin’s, though, and he doesn’t appear to be home yet. You should ask him if you prefer the sofa. Or,” Leo smirks, eyes flashing in a way Takumi doesn’t like, “if you’re into it, you can surely share Niles’s bed.”

Takumi turns beet-red. This isn’t happening. No. No no no. Why would Leo say this?! “Y-your room sounds fine,” Takumi manages to press out between his lips at last. This way there would only be one frenemy in his vicinity as opposed to a potential three. And Niles’s bed isn’t an option.

“Then it’s settled.” Leo gets up and walks over to his door. “Come with me.”

* * *

Takumi follows Leo to the bathroom. Leo knocks on the door. When no response comes, he opens it to an empty room, and stepping inside, turns on the light. “Did you run into any problems with the shower?” he asks. “You said you’re not familiar with a lot of the, let’s say, modern inventions here. You know you could’ve just asked.”

Takumi’s face reddens. He clenches his fists. “I don’t like how you’re insinuating this.” And anyway, he’s not about to ask a Nohrian how their contraptions are supposed to work in a half-naked condition with him covered in filth and in desperate need of a good scrub and a shave. And he’s smart enough to figure things out on his own.

Leo sighs. “I’m sorry.” Still, he rolls his eyes. Stupid scum. “So, you didn’t run into any problems?”

“Well, I did have to test a couple of things to figure out how they work.”

Leo’s superior smirk isn’t helping his case any. Still looking around, he places the soap where it belongs. “Did you figure out, then, what’s the difference between soap and shampoo?” He holds the bottles up for Takumi to see before replacing them.

“Shampoo is soap for the hair.”

“Correct.” Leo walks over to the sink, scrubbing with his fingers. His eyebrows draw down. “Whose toothbrush did you use?” he asks, voice controlled.

“I might’ve forgotten which one was for me and I didn’t want to use anyone else’s by accident, so I used my fingers to brush my teeth.” The blush is back.

Leo gives him a disgusted look. “I told you it’s in here. We always have a spare.” He takes a toothbrush wrapped in a see-through package out of the drawer above the sink. “Didn’t I put it here?” He taps against the sink’s edge.

“There was a lot of information to take in in a very short time!” Takumi throws his hands up. “And I don’t know how to open this weird wrapper anyway!”

Leo holds the toothbrush in its package up to his face and turns it around. “There’s a picture on here.” Takumi steps up to him and looks. Fuck. There _is_ a picture. Leo does as the picture shows and pushes his finger into the paper part of the wrapper, creating a flap to pull the wrapper open. Prying the toothbrush out by its handle, he hands it to Takumi. “You get to work immediately.”

It’s Takumi’s turn to roll his eyes. “I’ve never had problems with my teeth.”

Leo crosses his arms. “I don’t care. If you want to share my room, you clean your teeth properly.”

Takumi is this close to flipping Leo off. Controlling himself, he puts toothpaste onto the brush and brushes them for Leo like an obedient child for a supervising parent. Spitting into the sink afterwards and cleaning the residue paste out with a mouthful of water, Takumi asks, “Happy?”

Leo hums. “Almost. Clean the toothbrush.” Takumi holds them under the water tap. “By the way, wet the brush’s bristles first before putting toothpaste onto it next time.”

“What are you, my dad?”

Leo raises an eyebrow and smirks. Something flashes in his eyes but he doesn’t say anything and waits for Takumi to place his toothbrush with the others’ before turning around and pointing at the toilet. Ugh. This station is even worse. “Do you understand how to use the toilet?”

Takumi rolls his eyes again. “We have toilets in Hoshido, too, you know. We don’t flush them like this, but I know how to get this one to work.” An idea flashes in his head, and he can’t hide the grin tugging on his lips. “I will even demonstrate I know how to use toilet paper.” Taking a generous amount of paper, Takumi wipes at his still clothed behind. Takumi smiles at Leo rolling his eyes, at his fingers twitching. So he _can_ be provoked. Interesting.

Leo controls himself, though, and checks the comb Takumi used. “Brushes and combs are special here.”

“How so?”

“They don’t really belong to anyone. Or, it’s more like someone buys one, and everyone uses it if it’s forgotten in the bathroom. Just make sure you don’t have lice—”

“I spent two nights on the streets! Two! Nights! In my whole life! I’m usually a very clean person.”

“I have my own brush and comb in my room,” Leo goes on, unfazed. “If you want to, you can have your own ones as well. You seem to be pouring a lot of time into your hair.”

Takumi shrugs. “I don’t care as long as I don’t get lice from _you_ three.” He catches Leo hide a smirk behind a hand. “And as long as my hair doesn’t spliss or break. I prefer it long.”

“Now that this all is settled, I need to take a shower and get ready for bed. I have to get up early tomorrow.”

“Uh, okay.”

Takumi hasn’t even moved when Leo takes off his sweater. He’s still wearing a shirt underneath, but Takumi has the feeling his presence won’t stop Leo from stripping. He bolts.

Returning to Leo’s room, Takumi closes the door behind himself before Niles gets any ideas. Takumi’s already done enough socializing for one day. Looking around the room for something to kill his time with, he approaches one of Leo’s bookshelves and goes over the titles, finger tracing the books’ spines. The titles don’t mean anything to him, but maybe Leo’s taste in books isn’t abominable and something actually worthwhile hides in these shelves.

Takumi pulls out a book with an black spine with golden highlights. The front cover shows Nohrians in an old town, one of them climbing a wall, another sitting on horseback. After looking around for a place to sit down on to read, Takumi goes for the bed. It looks comfy enough and the skull cushion might serve a purpose besides scaring the unsuspecting.

Quickly enough, he’s engrossed in the novel which turns out to be very much to his likes—it promises tales of intrigue, spies, magic and friendship, set in a world not too unlike from his own (but certainly taking place in a Nohr-esque place). And so far, it doesn’t fail to deliver.

* * *

The door opens. Takumi looks up as Leo returns from the shower, wearing only a towel around his waist and another one on his shoulders to catch the water dripping from the wet strands of his hair. He doesn’t seem to notice Takumi as he goes to his closet and takes out sleep wear. Takumi’s glad he can bury his face in his book when Leo lets the towels fall to the ground to get dressed. What the fuck is _wrong_ with these people?

Eventually, Leo plops down next to Takumi. Takumi shuffles away to get a little more distance between them. He risks a look and finds Leo dressed. Phew.

Leo catches his eyes and smiles. “What’re you reading?” Takumi holds up the novel so Leo can read the title. “Do you like it so far?”

“It’s intriguing.” When Leo’s silence makes it obvious he’s waiting for more, Takumi adds, “I could identify with the main character in the beginning. When he’s locked in that cell and thinks he’s going to starve.”

“Because of your recent experiences?”

“Yes.” Takumi frowns. “Then he’s rescued by some guy.”

“Right.” Leo is waiting for something again, but Takumi won’t play into his hands. After a few moments, Leo turns his head and looks over to the bookshelf Takumi pried this book from. “I have all seven novels in the series. If you like this book, then you should at the very least read the second one as well. They’ve been written as one novel originally and split into two by the publisher.”

“Because it’s…” Takumi opens the book on the last page. “It’s 500 pages.”

“Yes. A thousand wouldn’t sell well. It’s too much for one novel.”

“If the story and characters are so good you can write seven novels with them, then I don’t see why you have to split it in the first place.”

Leo leans back on his elbows, his gaze sliding back to Takumi. “Most people won’t buy books this long. It takes a lot of dedication to read through them.”

Takumi shrugs. He turns the book over in his hands. “At home I could finish something like this in a week, I guess? Probably less, more like in four or five days, but it depends on how much time I have.”

“Impressive.” Leo cocks an eyebrow and smiles. “I used to be a much faster reader when I was a kid, but school’s taking up too much of my time nowadays. Anyway, there are some things I’d like to cover with you tomorrow, so I’d like us to get up early. You won’t mind an alarm to wake us, will you?”

Right. They will be sharing the room. “It’s fine.”

“Good. You need something to sleep in as well.” Leo pushes up from the bed and walks over to his closet. “You can either borrow one of my pyjamas, or you can sleep in any combination of clothes you think of as comfortable for sleeping in.”

“I’ll take the pyjama.”

“Mhm.” Leo takes a black-and-white one out. “What about underwear, though? You should change it every day.” Ugh. “I don’t mind sharing.”

“I do.” This is awkward enough as it is already, and sharing underwear is where Takumi needs to draw a line.

“Then we’ll go and buy a couple of pieces tomorrow.”

This sounds much better. “Good.”

“Come here.” Takumi gets up, placing the novel on Leo’s nightstand, and walks up to Leo. “I just took one out, but maybe you’d prefer the other one.”

Takumi looks where Leo is pointing. The two pyjamas on offer look pretty much identical to Takumi. “This one’s fine,” he says, tapping the one Leo’s holding. It doesn’t look like it screams death and devastation, at any rate. “I’m going to get changed, then.”

Leo turns to look at him. “Ah, I would prefer it greatly if you don’t end up crumbling the clothes you’re wearing at the moment. You know how to fold them up?”

“Yes.” He doesn’t—one of the castle’s servants always saw to it for him—but whatever. It can’t be too hard. Leo’s still looking at him, so Takumi makes a beeline for the bathroom. He will _not_ get changed in front of Leo!

Locking himself in again, Takumi quickly gets changed. He tries to fold the clothes he’s worn for the last few hours, but it doesn’t turn out quite as neatly as he would have liked. Well, it can’t be helped. He returns to Leo’s room.

Leo, meanwhile, has produced an extra mattress from somewhere and placed it on the floor. He looks up from pulling over the bedding when Takumi walks in and flinches.

Takumi rolls his eyes. “Your reaction will certainly help me not to develop an inferiority complex.” Which he probably already has but this is information he doesn’t have to part with.

Leo gestures to Takumi’s exposed arms. “What happened there?”

Takumi glances at them. Ah, battle scars. So it’s not the misshapen heap of ‘folded’ clothes he’s carrying with him. “Scars. I told you I’ve been fighting.” And these aren’t even the worst, but Takumi decides against presenting Leo with his chest. The worst scar he has, though, he hides on his back, and he’s glad he can’t see it himself. But whenever Takumi pulls his hair ot of the back of his clothes, his hands inevitably brush over the scar tissue there.

Leo hides his mouth behind one hand, fingers playing with the ring in his lip. Gesturing at his desk chair, he says, “Put the clothes down there. They’re still fresh enough for you to wear tomorrow.” Takumi does as he’s bid, glad Leo doesn’t press him. “I’ll go get you a pillow and a blanket for your makeshift bed.”

“Thank you.” Leo leaves the room and returns a good minute later carrying what he’s promised. He hands the pillow and blanket to Takumi who makes himself comfortable. “Thank you,” he says again.

“Don’t mention it.” Leo turns on the lamp by his nightstand before turning off his overhead light and getting into bed himself. Takumi follows him with his eyes and notices he’s placed a bookmark next to the novel Takumi’s been reading. How thoughtful of him. He lies down, pulling his blanket up to his chin, and turns off the light.

Takumi reflects on his own sleeping situation, and he has to admit: Sleeping on a mattress on the floor isn’t so bad when you spent the last two nights on the streets, on hard surfaces, in the cold. Takumi shuffles even deeper into his blanket, like a caterpillar in his cocoon.

“Takumi?” Leo asks.

Takumi sighs into his blanket. “What?”

“You must still have a lot of questions about this world, especially concerning technology.”

“I do.”

“Then ask.”

“Well, for starters, we don’t have cars. Only horse carriages, which smell bad, too, but not like your cars. And they’re much slower. And don’t just… drive by themselves.”

“Cars were invented—”

“Oh, and these pads with screens? The ones you can use for speaking with someone over long distances? How do they work?”

“You mean phones.” And Leo gets to explaining.

Takumi later can’t recall when, but he must have fallen asleep during Leo’s lengthy explanations. And he won’t tell Leo about his nightmares. He won’t.

* * *

Takumi returns home.

He’s claimed a rift in a mountain cliffside for himself, or rather, what lies beyond it. If you follow the tight path to its conclusion, it ends in a clearing with lush, green grass and even a small lake, filled with water accumulated from rain. Apart from a few trees with birds in them and what appears to be a burrow spewing out rabbits, there’s not much here to sustain him. But that’s okay. He’s a hunter.

The rift is so tight, Takumi’s chest brushes against it when he squeezes through it sideways. He doubts anyone could follow him here, at least anyone larger than him. After a few minutes of agonizingly slow squeezing, he enters the clearing. The first thing he always checks when he arrives home is the sky.

Looking up, Takumi scans the blue vastness stretching out between the mountain peaks, streaks of white hinting at clouds. Nothing. Good. And if anyone dared fly over here with their pegasus, kinshi, or even wyvern, his bow is ready. Something tugs at his lips, and he lets the grin spread.

And looking at it like this, it’s kind of a shame the sky is clear.

Well, it can’t be helped. Takumi treks over to a crevice in a wall. It provides enough shelter to stay dry should it rain, and the floor isn’t so hard once laid out with rabbit skins.

And in the back, there’s even enough space for his treasures. His collection’s started with a simple deer’s head, now only a skull. But his collection’s grown and still growing, ever growing. Hollow bird bones, rabbit teeth and even a human thigh bone. Takumi licks his lips at the memories of the hunt, the kill, the taste. It’s a wonderful price.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next update will go live on August 7. What a long wait! I'll pass the time with Three Houses (and, of course, writing)! What about you?


	5. Chapter 4

“Are you awake?” Leo asks quietly.

Well, his alarm went off about a minute ago. Takumi was already awake for a while at this point—nightmares about cannibalism aren’t exactly his idea of catching a good night’s worth of sleep—but the ringing alarm still startled him. “I am.”

“Good morning.”

“Morning…”

Leo rolls out of bed and turns on the overhead light. It’s still dark outside. “Take your clothes and get ready in the bathroom. I’m going to fix us coffee in the meantime.”

“Okay.” Takumi hushes into the bathroom, glad Leo won’t make him get changed in front of him. And Takumi can lock the door! On top of getting changed, he brushes his teeth and shaves away the hint of stubble, then brushes out his hair and ties it into his trademark ponytail.

He passes Leo in the hall. Leo’s hand hovers over Takumi’s shoulder, but—thank the dragons—he doesn’t lower it. “I forget to mention, please try and stay quiet,” he whispers. “Odin probably came home late and Niles likes to sleep in.”

Takumi nods. Leo takes his place in the bathroom and Takumi enters the kitchen. The smell hits him immediately, and he follows his nose, sniffing at the fumes drafting up from the so-called ‘coffee’ in a can. It smells okay enough, but Takumi doesn’t know what he’s getting served here, either. Nohrian water turned out to be a-okay, after all, and why fix something that’s not broken? This coffee could very well be some distilled poison, after all.

Leo returns and sits down at the table across from Takumi with two cups in his hand. He places them on the table and fills them with the coffee from the can. And he seems willing enough to drink the brown stuff himself, so Takumi gingerly takes his own cup and sips at the liquid.

And spits it right out again. It tastes absolutely _disgusting_. How Leo—or anyone else for that matter—can stand this stuff is a mystery. Must be the Nohrian taste buds…

Leo laughs, pissing Takumi off even more. He felt like he was drinking poison a mere second ago, and now Leo has the audacity to laugh at him for this? Well, thanks a whole fucking lot. Takumi expects nothing less from someone who wears the face of the enemy.

However, Leo sobers up fast. “Hey,” he says, and his voice sounds so soft and soothing, it creates a stark contrast to his mean laugh, “most people have to get used to the taste first.”

“You’re remembering this just now?”

“I didn’t know you didn’t like coffee. You could’ve said something.”

Takumi bites his lip. He didn’t even know what coffee was. “So why do you keep drinking this stuff until you like it?”

“There’s no better, perfectly healthy way to get awake even at the dead hours of the night.” Leo smiles and nods at the window. It’s still dark outside although the sun is painting the clouds in shades of deep purple and pink.

“Why did we have to get up this early anyway?”

Leo drains his cup, stands up and sets the table with plates and knives. “I’m an early riser. And isn’t dawn beautiful?” Takumi looks out the window again. It _is_ beautiful, and it’s something the Leo in his world has probably only seen for the first time once he crossed the border. “Can I offer you hot chocolate since you don’t like coffee?”

“I don’t know what chocolate is, either.”

“It’s sweet instead of bitter.” Leo holds out an aluminum bowl filled with brown powder.

Takumi sniffs at it. It does smell sweet—and different than he expected. “I’ll try it.”

Leo mixed the powder with milk. Takumi takes an apple from the fruit basket Leo’s placed on the table and cuts it in quarters, then bites into it. Leo turns around, placing the cup with the chocolate in front of Takumi. “Here you go.”

Takumi looks into the cup while he’s finishing his apple. The stuff is freaky—it looks like _shit_ , for goodness’s sake—but it smells and tastes sweet. It’s definitely better than coffee.

Leo prods Takumi with another basket, this one filled with slices of bread. “Eat some more. It’s going to be a long day.”

Takumi narrows his eyes and goes over the options on the table. Cheese is okay, and sausage is so mercifully normal that Takumi almost sheds a tear. Almost. “What have you planned?”

Leo smirks behind the rim of his cup of coffee. “You’ll find out soon enough.”

This is not putting Takumi off at all. No. Not in the kitchen filled with other freaky things, including a ‘toaster’, a ‘microwave’, a ‘fridge’ (at least this contraption seems useful), and above anything else, a ‘radio’. It’s like tiny people are trapped inside and talk and make noise and music! If he were at home, Takumi would have thought it a way Nohrians utilize to trap their enemies and make them please them with sounds. Takumi shivers involuntarily at the thought.

“Are you all right?” Leo asks, bringing him back to the here and now. Takumi nods.

* * *

After finishing breakfast and putting the dishes away, Leo taps at a list pinned against the fridge’s door. “This is where we post our the list of chores for the apartment and house. We split the duties evenly between us, meaning Niles, Odin and me, and now that you’re temporarily living here, too, you’re going to help out as well.”

“Oookay…” Takumi steps up to Leo to read the list. Chores include cleaning the apartment, washing clothes, doing groceries, and handling ‘landlord business’. “What’s the last one mean?” Takumi asks, tapping at the list.

“Landlord business? Taking out the trash, bringing in the post, and cleaning the house floor if it’s our turn.”

“Ah.”

“You will clean the apartment. This is going to be your only duty because, frankly put, I don’t trust you with the groceries nor with anything around the house, and your incompetence with technology will have us end up without any wearable clothes.”

“Wow, thanks.” Takumi rolls his eyes.

Leo doesn’t look, though, which kind of mutes the effect. Instead, he’s adjusting the table accordingly, adding another line for Takumi and putting in cleaning duty for the first week he’s here. “How do you spell your name?”

“Let me.” Takumi takes the pen from him and puts his name down—in Hoshidan.

Leo turns his head towards Takumi, giving him the most exasperated look yet. “Really?” Takumi bites his lip so his grin won’t show. He scribbles ‘TAKUMI’ in parenthesis under the Hoshidan script. “Thank you. Now, follow me.”

Takumi follows Leo stride out of the kitchen and into the bathroom. He opens the cabinet under the sink. “You should find everything you’ll need to clean the apartment here. It’s important that the windows, floors and surfaces are clean by my standards which you can check anytime in my room.” Takumi rolls his eyes as Leo closes the cabinet. This time he notices, and Takumi’s met with a cheeky grin. “I had to train Odin, you know.”

“On what?”

“On what I consider ‘clean’ and on how to clean everything properly in the first place.” Leo leads Takumi out of the bathroom and into the hallway. “If you’re not sure how to clean something specifically, go and ask someone around for help before you do more damage than good.”

Takumi’s mouth is a thin line. He’s fallen far: Instead of a prince, he now scrubs an apartment (albeit he can stay there for free, otherwise, so admittedly it is kind of fair). But the contant nagging and implied criticism aren’t exactly feeding his ego.

“Anyway, there’s two things I want to check with you today,” Leo says, standing up again and walking past Takumi to pull on a pair of boots. So they’re going to go out. Takumi likewise puts on his muddied pair of shoes. His feet hurt as soon as he slips inside them. Great. “Firstly, I want to take you back to the place where you first woke up.”

Oh.

“People who suffer from amnesia—and your condition certainly has similarities to memory loss—might remember something if taken to a crucial place that might trigger their memory.”

“I’m not suffering from amnesia.” His memory is a little hazy, yes, but in the literal haze way—there’s haze and mist and vapor when he tries to remember anything that’s happened just before he woke up in this world.

“That doesn’t matter. There could very well be a portal only you can access and through which you could escape back into your world. Or it’s at least in the close vicinity of the place where you regained consciousness.”

“This sounds even more far-fetched!”

“Well, you must have crossed worlds _somehow_. Walking through a portal seems a good a theory as any.” Leo fixed Takumi with his eyes. He doesn’t look happy. “What do you have to offer?”

“Nothing…”

“Then don’t complain.”

Takumi swallows. “See, something like parallel universes does exist in my world, and it’s even possible to cross into those deeprealms.” He rubs the Fujin Yumi’s bowstring in his pocket for good luck. Perhaps this is the key he needs?

Yes, you mentioned something like this…” Leo opens the door to the house floor and steps outside after checking his pockets.

Takumi follows him. “Yeah, we use them to make human offspring age faster in times of war to protect them, or have more soldiers at hand. Time flows differently in other realms so you put the baby in, and,” he snaps his fingers, “ta-dah! A grown-up!”

Leo blanches. “I refuse to believe this.”

“But it’s true!”

Leo clears his throat. “Secondly, should this theory of mine not bear fruit, we should buy underwear for you.”

Takumi frowns. Wait. _Wait._ Leo has already made him put his name on the chores table, so it’s clear what _he_ expects to happen: nothing. Ugh. Now he doesn’t want to try out anything anymore! Takumi shoves his hands deeper into his pockets as they descend the stairs and step outside into the morning air. Pulling out the bowstring a little, Takumi looks at the faintly glowing thread before shoving it back down with his fists.

* * *

Walking down the street, Leo asks, “Which option do you prefer: Walking back to where you ran into Elise and me, or take the bus there?”

Takumi blinks. “What’s a ‘bus’?”

“It’s like a big car that can transport over 50 people.” Takumi’s not sure he trusts something like this. If Camilla’s weird wagon from the day before is any indication, he will only suffer motion sickness, and that wouldn’t be a pretty sight. Takumi really doesn’t want to puke in front of Leo on top of it all. “Camilla can’t drive us because she’s at work,” Leo supplies. Good. One Nohrian car thing avoided. “So it’s down to either the bus or walking.”

“Let’s walk.”

“You do understand that it’s quite a hike.”

“I’m used to walking.” Even if his feet ache. “I’ve never been fond of horses and the only other options are pegasi and kinshi. Which means flying.” Leo stops dead in his tracks. Takumi stops as well and turns towards Leo. “What?”

“You’re not joking, are you?”

“No?”

“I don’t know what ‘kinshi’ are, but pegasi are a product of the imagination here. They don’t actually exist.”

Takumi sighs. What a shame.

Leo resumes walking, Takumi falling into step beside him. Leo asks, “So, how do they work?”

“Uh, they flap their wings and up they go.”

Leo chuckles. “No, I mean, is it like public transport? Or do you have to own one of these animals to make use of their abilities?”

“Most people own them, although there’s places where you can borrow one for the day. They’re mostly used as work animals, but some like to keep them as pets. And some people don’t differentiate between the two.”

“And what’s it feel like riding one of these animals?”

“Bad. Really, really bad.” Leo laughs, and Takumi can’t help but smile for the first time in who knows how long. “I don’t like giving up control like this, and it’s even worse because you’re up in the air! And not just, like, ten feet or so, but a hundred and more.”

“I understand your sentiment.”

“Do you?”

“Yes. Do you know this light feeling you get when you look up in the sky from high up?”

“Don’t you mean down? I always feel queasy then.”

“For me, looking up is worse. It’s like I can see how much closer I am to the sky even though I can’t.”

Takumi follows Leo’s line of sight and looks up into the sky. It looks clearer than yesterday, specks of blue caught in-between a web of white and gray clouds. A few birds are making their way east.

Takumi chokes when Leo yanks him back by the collar. A car whooshes by, honking, making Takumi’s ears ring. His heart is hammering against his chest. He reaches for his neck and gingerly feels for any damage when Leo lets him go not even a second later. “You can’t just walk onto the street without looking! If the car hit you, you could’ve been badly injured or even killed!”

“I… I…” Takumi swallows and clears his throat. Still, the words won’t come. And worst of all, Leo did not only save him, he even sounds concerned. Would Takumi do the same in return? If he didn’t depend on Leo for food and shelter, probably not.

But… is he really this heartless?

“Listen, you _really_ need to know and learn about how this world works,” Leo says, interrupting Takumi’s thoughts. “You can’t cross streets without looking. This is different from your world.”

“I… I get it.”

Leo mutters something under his breath that sounds suspiciously close to, “I can’t leave you out of my sight.”

“Look, why don’t you walk in front now and point out any safety hazards so you can make sure the streets are save to cross before I, uh, provoke an accident?”

“A sound idea.” So that’s what they do.

Takumi learns about traffic lights, street markings and signs. Well, he’d kinda figured out traffic lights by himself, but getting actual explanations does help a lot to further his understanding. Especially when it comes to street signs. Whoever designed these should’ve just put text on them. Takumi can’t see anything in the weird symbols half the time, and the other half there aren’t even any symbols on there. How the hell is anyone supposed to know a white, upside-down triangle with a red border means everyone else can go first?!

Apart from explaining everything Takumi doesn’t recognize and making sure he won’t get himself killed, Leo says, “You’re from Hoshido.”

“Yes.”

“What’s it like?”

“It’s…” There are too many memories flashing through Takumi’s head. He doesn’t know what to specifically focus on, so he only says, “It’s beautiful.”

“Why do you think so?”

“It’s… It feels warm, you know? It’s my home.” He doesn’t know what else to say and the memories start hurting him anyway. “What’s your family like? I’ve already seen Elise and Camilla.”

“Yes. I have an older brother, as well.”

“Xander.”

Leo’s eyes flick briefly to Takumi. “Correct. When we were little, we all lived together with our father. Now we all have our own apartments, although Camilla and I share ours with friends. Elise and Xander live alone.” They cross another street after Leo’s made sure no car will run them over. “I get along rather well with my sisters. It’s harder with Xander but I know that he’ll be there for me if anything ever comes up.”

“What about your father?”

Leo frowns. “He used to be there for us when I was a kid, but then he changed. I don’t know what got into him. It was like he was losing his grip on reality. Xander was already old enough that he considered applying for a place in a psychiatric hospital. But our father died before we could finalize any plans. Good riddance.”

These are some harsh words Takumi didn’t expect to hear. He’s always thought of Leo and his siblings glorifying their father, not trying to get rid of him. Although this might only be true for this world, the similarities with his own so far are unnerving. Takumi can’t quite shut down the nagging feeling that what Corrin does at home is more complicated than blindly following an insane king’s orders.

Then again, this is all told from Leo’s perspective. And these people mightn’t even be the same ones, after all. Might.

* * *

After about an hour of walking in total, Takumi recognizes the alleyway where he ran into Leo and Elise. As if underlining the fact, Leo says, “We’re here.”

Takumi looks around. The fact that he’s looking around at all instead of disappearing back into his world is disconcerting. And there doesn’t appear to be a portal he can cross through here. But wait! “I didn’t appear in the alleyway but a little further away.”

“Lead the way.”

Turning in all directions the alleyway has to offer, Takumi admits, “I don’t remember where exactly I woke up or how long I’ve been walking around when I ran into you and your sister.” He stops turning to frown up at Leo. “When I came to in this world, I was suffering from tunnel vision.” And a panic attack. But that’s something Leo doesn’t have to know, something he can piece together himself.

“Then let’s reconstruct the scene. Elise and I were walking from the inner city to the subway station, so we were walking in this direction.” Leo positions himself. “You ran into me from straight ahead, so you were coming from there.” Leo points straight ahead and starts walking, taking the lead. “Tell me as soon as something else seems familiar to you, something from your first moments here.”

Takumi laughs hollowly. “So far, nothing, not even this alleyway where I allegedly ran into you two, seems familiar to me.”

Leo swallows. His expression looks distraught, his mouth wrinkles at its corners, his nose is scrunched up. He doesn’t say anything.

Still, they push on. They exit the alleyway and arrive in a big street offering two lanes that go both ways. “Do you recognize this street?” Leo asks.

Takumi looks the street up and down, then shakes his head. “No. Nothing.”

“Then how about we ask passers-by if they saw anything out of the ordinary four days ago?” Ugh. Please not. “I already checked the local news sites yesterday, but they haven’t reported anything—either because neither the police nor an ambulance was involved, or because no one saw you appear out of thin air.”

“Maybe they didn’t. Or I didn’t.”

“What do you mean?”

“Maybe no one looked when I appeared or… maybe I appeared somewhere else. Maybe I was brought here by someone from my world. I don’t know how I ended up here…”

“We can still ask around.”

“No. Please.” Leo turns his head towards Takumi, the unasked question evident in his eyes. “Who’s to say anyone who _might_ have see anything—note the _might_ —is here today?” Takumi elaborates. And also, he _might_ —note the _might_ —crave attention, but certainly not like this. There’s a difference between standing in the spotlight of strangers and being shown affection by his loved ones.

The look on Leo’s face at Takumi’s response swims somewhere between disappointment and incomprehension.

Takumi holds up his hands to catch Leo’s attention. “Which isn’t to say we should give up! Perhaps I’ll recognize something if we walk the street up and down? I remember the scenery from when I woke up distinctly.”

Leo raises an eyebrow. “If that’s good enough for us to go on.”

“It is.” It’s a lie. Takumi’s not sure he remembers anything clearly from his first hour in this world. Walking the street up and down a bit and eventually crossing it does however ring a bell with Takumi. “I think I recognize the top rows of these buildings,” he says, pointing at houses about five floors high with glass façades. “When I woke up, I was lying on my back and looking up at the sky.” Framing the view, Takumi walks around a bit and tries to find the exact spot where he woke up. “Here.” He steps on the ground.

“Lie down.”

Takumi crosses his arms. “No.”

“It might trigger something.”

“Yeah, _might_. My favorite word today.”

“It might either jog your memories further or take you back to your world. Maybe that’s the portal.”

“Leo, are you serious? People will notice and stare!”

“They’re already staring,” Leo says, snorting. Takumi turns to look around. Indeed, some people are giving them funny looks, making his face heat up from equal parts anger and embarrassment. “Can it get any worse?”

“I hope I’ll just poof out of existence,” Takumi mutters under his breath, giving Leo a pointed look. “Then it’s your problem to deal with.” Leo shrugs as Takumi lies down in the same position, after some adjusting, as he was in when he first opened his eyes to this world.

Nothing happens.

Nothing. Not even a few memories as to what exactly has gone down return.

Sighing, Takumi gets up again. “What a waste of time.” He looks around again. There are even more people staring at him than before! He throws up his arms to hide his face.

“Let’s call it a day,” Leo says. “My idea obviously didn’t work.”

“Yes. It didn’t.” Takumi removes his arms and leds Leo lead the way, away from the stupid onlookers. “We wanted to buy… underwear for me…”

“That’s right, and that’s what we’re going to do.”

Takumi’s still trailing after Leo, and he wants to keep it this way. Because… “You didn’t believe it would work anyway, did you?”

Leo turns his head around to look at Takumi and show him his frown before opting to watch the traffic again. “Why would you think that?”

“You put me on the table with the chores. Which means you expected me to still be around for the week. Which means you expected this endeavor to fail.”

Leo humphs. That’s all—he doesn’t even try to contradict Takumi. Instead, he enters a store with clothes on display, Takumi following him just as silently inside.

It smells. Whatever Nohrians do to new clothes does not gain Takumi’s approval. The store is divided into different sections. Leo leads him to the one displaying men’s underwear. There are even three-in-one packages and three-for-two deals.

Takumi pretends to be interested, but he frankly only feels a weak wave of secondhand embarrassment at the prints on and colours of the underwear offered. It’s ridiculous. No one sees them anyway—Takumi can understand putting a print on a shirt, so others can see, but cherries on your butt cheeks? What the hell? He doesn’t browse what’s offered, just takes three of the three-in-one packages with simple, black, gray and white boxer shorts and hands them over to Leo.

“You’re being difficult,” Leo says.

“I know.” Leo rolls his eyes and makes his way towards the check-out. “So are you. You still haven’t answered me, you know.”

“There isn’t anything to say to that.” Leo pays for the packages and shoves them into Takumi’s arms. “I have a hard time believing in magic and its consequences.”

* * *

Takumi doesn’t say anything to Leo as he takes them home. And why should he? Leo doesn’t make an inch of sense! He says he believes Takumi, but he’s not about to believe in magic. Takumi _can’t_ do magic, or he’d show him—all he has is the Fujin Yumi’s bowstring, and that’s only part of the whole deal. True, the string gives off it’s faint blue glow, but that doesn’t look impressive when you see flashing lights showing people, with sound and everything, all the time in this world.

Perhaps glowing strings are a thing here, too, and Leo’s just decided to humor Takumi and play along. Perhaps he thinks Takumi’s a loony.

Takumi almost walks into Leo when he suddenly stops, turns 90 degrees, and waits. Looking for a reason, Takumi spots a sign jutting out of the ground. He sighs and settles to wait with Leo for whatever. After less than five minutes, a so-called ‘bus’ arrives.

“Get on,” Leo says, taking the lead again. Takumi follows him. Leo buys a ticket by tapping on a screen installed on a metal cabinet, inserts some coins and a slip of paper comes out. Takumi’s fare.

“Don’t you need one as well?”

“I have a subscription ticket. Comes with my student card.” The bus sets into motion again, causing Takumi to stumble. He barely catches himself, holding on to Leo’s arm. Ugh. Takumi lets go as soon as he can stand on his own again. “There’s a free seat there.” Leo nods towards one of the ugliest chairs Takumi’s ever had the pleasure to behold. The seat next to the one indicated by Leo is occupied by an elderly lady.

The wonky rumbling of the bus is bad enough, though, to make Takumi want to sit down despite his misgivings. The bus ride turns out to be bumpier and than the ride with Camilla’s car. Takumi swallows down his bile more frequently than he cares to remember. The bus stops a couple of times, and each time it sets off again, Takumi’s stomach lurches worse than before. Eventually, he gets up once the bus stops and flees the bus. Terrible contraption.

Only when he is outside and the bus has taken off again does he care to check if Leo’s still with him. If he isn’t, how is Takumi going to find back to his home? But Leo’s there when Takumi turns around, a concerned expression drawing down the corners of his mouth. “Are you all right?”

“I need fresh air, solid ground, and maybe take a few steps myself.” Takumi sighs. “I get motion sickness in these car things.”

“Oh. Well, many people have that problem at first.”

“And what do you do against it?”

“Take pills? But mostly, get used to it.”

Takumi knows he won’t take any Nohrian ‘medicine’. That stuff is probably poison. “Great.”

Leo’s mouth draws into a thin line at Takumi’s thinly disguised sarcasm. “Let’s go home. It’s still about a fifteen minute walk, so it’s not so bad.”

“Yes.” Takumi waits for Leo to take the lead again, then falls into step beside him.

“We could’ve cut another ten minutes of the way if you had held out a little longer in the bus.” Leo’s words cut, but he sounds understanding, not like he blames Takumi. “Have you ever suffered from motion sickness before?”

“We don’t have cars or buses in my world, only carriages pulled by horses. Or we ride on steeds, like horses, pegasi or kinshi. And they are different. They move at a much slower pace. And there’re animals involved, so it’s alive somehow, you know? You can talk to them, tell them if they’re going too fast or they aren’t steady enough. But it’s different with a car or a bus. They don’t have any regard for this.”

“They have drivers, though.”

“I’ve got the impression everyone wants to go as fast as possible. Because they can.”

“Well, you’re not wrong. And you might get a fine if you’re going too slow.”

“What?!”

Leo chuckles. “There are speed limits in place, too. You get fines if you’re going too fast or you can even lose your driver’s license, depending on your speed.”

“This is the first Nohrian thing that makes sense here.” Leo chuckles again. “Anyway, what I also don’t like about car things is how confined they make me feel. There are walls and windows. You’re trapped inside, in a way you aren’t even in a carriage. If something happens on your ride, you can get out or off way more easily than being at the mercy of those machines.”

“Ah, but it doesn’t quite work that way. And cars and buses are quite a bit safer than carriages or riding can dream to be, especially if you take your flying steeds into consideration.”

Takumi rolls his eyes. Why does Leo have to be so bratty and always one-up what he says?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will go live on August 21st!


	6. Chapter 5

For whichever reason, Leo is an early riser, even on his days off. If Takumi wasn’t sure about this yesterday, he is today, when Leo shuffling in his bed wakes Takumi from a fitful and restless sleep. This way, at least the stupid nightmares are over for the time being.

“Are you awake?” Leo asks in a whisper.

Takumi looks over to him. Leo’s lying on his side, still almost completely covered by his blanket. “Yeah.”

“Then let’s get up.”

“I need a shower for that.”

Leo peels off his blanket. Stifling a yawn, he gets up and walks over to his dresser. Oh, come on!

Takumi gets up as fast as he can, takes fresh clothes from a pile prepared the evening before by him and Leo, and rushes out of the room and into the bathroom before Leo revels in his own nakedness. What Takumi needs is a quick shower, water running as cold as it can, to properly wake up. It feels good, although he does turn the heat up a notch after the first two minutes.

When he’s finished showering and shaving, Takumi finds Leo—clothed—already in the kitchen setting the table. With a smile he quickly conceals behind his hand, Takumi notes Leo only brewed one cup of coffee. “Do you want cocoa, like yesterday, or tea?” he asks.

There is tea?! Why didn’t anyone tell him sooner? “Tea!” Of course he wants tea!

Leo rummages through a shelf, saying, “This is my private tea collection. I like a good tea once in a while, but coffee usually beats tea for me.”

“Do you have green tea?”

“I think so, yes.” Leo takes a package out and sets it on the table. ‘Green tea,’ it reads. Yes! “Odin’s tea collection is probably greater. He even comes up with his own brews, so if you would like something more matched to your personal preferences, you should ask him.”

“I haven’t even seen him. You sure he’s living here?”

Leo chuckles, filling a can with water and pressing a button. “He’d like being called a ‘phantom’, so do him the favor once you two meet.”

“Okay?”

Leo turns around to face Takumi again and nods. “Until then, you can freely help yourself to my tea.”

“Thanks. So, uh, what’s that thing?” Takumi indicates the funny can with his index.

Leo follows where Takumi’s pointing. “Ah, it’s a water boiler,” he says, turning back towards Takumi.

Hm. Hopefully it does exactly what it’s supposed to, judging from the name. Takumi makes sure to watch the thing carefully—he needs to know how to do this himself ASAP, so he won’t be at a Nohrian’s mercy whenever he’s in the mood for tea. The thing suddenly emits a humming noise, causing Takumi to flinch. Leo doesn’t see because he’s turning to the thing as soon as it starts humming. Steam is coming out of the water boiler’s top, so it seems to be working.

Leo pours the water into a cup, setting it for Takumi. “Thanks.” Takumi fumbles around with the tea package and extracts a tea bag, tying the string around the cup’s handle.

“You’ve checked the pockets of the clothes you originally came with, right?” Leo asks. He puts a basket of bread and several things to spread on the slices on the table.

“Yes.”

“Do you have a wallet of some kind? You know, something to stash money in?” Nodding, Takumi pulls the brown, leathery (but fake-leathery) wallet out of his pants’ pocket. Leo takes it and rifles through it while Takumi covers one of his bread slices with marmalade. What’s with Nohrians and all the bread, anyway? “No money?” Leo asks.

Flushing, Takumi says, “I spent almost all of it on food when I made do on the streets, and the rest was stolen from me.”

“At least it comes with cards.” Leo pulls out aforementioned cars and lines them up on the table. “An ID, an ATM card and a healthcare card,” he explains. “Your healthcare has to be paid _somehow_ , so we should check your bank account. We should be able to access it with this.” He taps on the ATM card. “What’s more, your ID comes with an address.” He turns the card around and lets Takumi have a closer look at it.

There’s indeed an address printed on it, but that’s not the first thing Takumi notices: There’s a picture of him on the card, and it’s the most unflattering likeness of him he’s ever beheld.

“The main problem with the address here is that it’s not in town. We’ll have to borrow a car for that day.”

“You know I get motion sickness…”

“And I know it’ll get better with time, _and_ that we have no other way of reaching the place otherwise.” Leo puts marmalade on his slice of bread, too, and tops it off with a slice of cheese. Ew.

“Couldn’t we, like, walk?”

“We could, but that would take two days? Three days? And I’m only talking about one way. At the very least _I_ would still need to get back.” Takumi chews on his slice of bread. “Convinced?”

“Persuaded, yeah. But not happy.”

“We will at least be able to find clues there.”

“Yeah…”

“All right, so the problem is, I don’t have a car, and neither Camilla nor Xander are likely to lend me theirs.” Leo prepares another slice of bread like the last one. “I aced all my driving tests so their reservations are unfounded, of course.”

Takumi hides a snicker.

“Anyway, I’ll have to ask one of the two if they’re free and want to help.”

“Can you ask Camilla first, please? She’s already in on my ‘secret’.” And he feels like she’s easier to get along with than Xander…

Leo nods, taking out his phone and tapping on the screen. He replaces the phone and smiles at Takumi. “Done.”

“Thanks.”

“Mhm. By the way, how old are you?”

“19.”

Leo raises an eyebrow. “Date of birth?”

“December 14. What are you so interested in this for all of a sudden?”

Leo reaches for Takumi’s ID and looks it it. He flips it between his fingers and hands it to Takumi. “The date of birth is correct.”

“…But?”

“Look closer. Either your birth year is wrong or you aren’t 19 anymore in this world.”

“I don’t know which year we have.”

“2018. So according to your ID, you’re 22.”

“Huh.” Now that Takumi thinks about it, Leo might very well look older than he does in his world, although he can’t gauge how old he is there, anyway. About his own age, surely. “And you?”

“I’m 23.” Well, didn’t he say he goes to university? Of course he can’t be, like, 19 as well. And they are really about the same age, so does this mean Takumi’s aged these three years? Is he going to die three years earlier now like he’s been effectively cheated out of these years? Or is the ID lying and his body is still 19? He obviously has retained his old body—the scars are all there.

Takumi holds his forehead. This is confusing to say the least.

* * *

“Get dressed and we can check out your ATM card,” Leo says after breakfast, putting away the dishes. Takumi wants to help but doesn’t see how he can without getting in Leo’s way all the time.

“You’ll have to explain how it works.”

“Mhm.”

“I…” Takumi swallows, balling his hands into fists. “I fear this might all go over my head. I’m still confused about a lot of the things you showed me and explained to me.”

Leo finishes loading the dishwasher and turns around to face Takumi, a confident smile on his face. “I’m convinced you’ll manage. You’re bright and a fast learner. And if the last two days have taught me anything, it’s that you can adapt.”

Trying to hide the stupid blush at the unexpected praise, Takumi first pulls his collar up, then gets up and leaves the room to get dressed. Maybe he should untie his hair next time and have it fall into his face to further the effect…

Leo is close behind Takumi. “And we don’t know how long your stay is going to last,” he says, pulling on his boots.

Takumi frowns. This only serves to remind him how much he misses everyone back home. But Leo is already out the door, and Takumi has to take care to catch up to him, so he pulls himself together.

“There’s an ATM close to the house,” Leo says.

“Okay.” Takumi follows Leo down the street. They’re taking the opposite direction from the day before.

Leo slows down until Takumi is walking next to him. “You’ve been quiet. Are you all right?”

“Yeah… Just reminiscing about home.”

“Oh.” Leo looks over to Takumi, frowning. “I’m sorry for saying that getting you home might not turn out to be easy.”

“It’s all right. At least you’re not…” This is harder to admitthan Takumi expects. “You’re not deceiving me.”

Leo smiles briefly, then indicates a machine. “This is the ATM. Can you give me your card?”

“Which one?” Takumi fumbles for his wallet.

“ATM. Not your ID.” There’s still two cards left, though. At Takumi’s indecisiveness, Leo adds, “Hand me both.” Takumi does. Leo inserts the card in a slot in the machine and taps on it. “I’m going to check your balance.” Paper comes out of another slit. Leo takes the print-out and reads over it before handing it to Takumi. “Your card is blank, but without your pin code there wouldn’t be any way for us to access the potential money stored in your account anyway.”

Takumi leaves through the sheets of paper in his hands. The second page shows a transaction. “Then what’s this?”

Leo leans towards Takumi and reads the print-out. “Someone, or some _thing_ , puts money on there once a month. It’s just enough to cover your healthcare fees.”

“Does this happen to everyone?”

“No. It is… unnerving.” Leo frowns. “What’s even weirder is that the name of the person or entity responsible, the one giving you the money, is only represented by a string of nonsensical characters.” He taps the sheet where a name should be.

“Can’t we look into that?”

“We can, although I doubt anything will come of it.”

“I’m thinking it could be a cipher.”

“Hm…” Leo squints at the print-out as if that leads to an answer. “At any rate, there are two things you can do with your account: Either you talk to the bank personnel and have your pin code restored—you can prove your identity with your ID, after all—or you can leave it as it is for now. It’s not a pressing issue and you did mention all the new information is overwhelming.”

“Yeah… I still need to wrap my head around a lot of things.”

“If you ever need to earn money, you will need your pin restored or open up a new account. But that’s not something we need to concern ourselves with right away.”

“Good.” And good it is—this is a _chore_. And Takumi doesn’t want to talk to more people than he has to, especially since he still feels unwell. Nothing they try leads to any clues, and he doubts the nonsensical string of characters on the print-out amounts to much. Well, he’ll crack his head open about it anyway.

However, sooner or later, he will need to get a job. He doesn’t have any money, and without money he won’t get far… or anywhere, really. And Takumi doesn’t want to live off of Leo forever.

Takumi kicks a pebble. This is stupid. Money is stupid and being stuck here is stupid.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next update will be on September 4th. Until then, why not comment and share your thoughts?


	7. Chapter 6

The pebble hits a grille in the street. “Why don’t we go into town again?” Leo asks, unprompted.

“Will we have to take the bus again?”

Leo shakes his head. “We will walk today, both ways. You seem to be fit enough for that anyway.”

“Isn’t everyone?” Takumi asks, falling into step beside Leo who’s already started walking.

“You’ll be surprised. Cars make people lazy, and some have no stamina.”

“But people use them because they’re faster than even horses, right?”

“Yes, and they can go on indefinitely. Well, as long as they have gas, but you get the idea.”

“Mhm.”

“So, what about you?” Leo turns to look at Takumi. “Do you do sports in your free time?”

“You know about my bow.” Takumi instinctively reaches for it on his back, even though the familiar weight isn’t there. “Uh, I do archery, obviously. But I also like swimming. Maybe I’ll pick up running, too, to stay fit?”

Leo chuckles. “You look good enough for me.” An angry blush colors Takumi’s cheeks red. Stupid Leo, always teasing him! “You’re also rather broad in the shoulders for someone so… vertically challenged.”

Clenching his fists, Takumi spits out, “One more jab at me, and I’m going back to the streets. Maybe make sure a car runs over me when I’m at it, too.”

“Please don’t.” It comes out so quietly and sounds so genuine that Takumi is taken aback. He’s already calming down.

Better change the subject, and quick. “So, uh, what about you? Are you interested in any sports?”

“The only thing I really do is ride my horse. I don’t have the space at home for her, but I visit her once a week, twice if time allows it, and take her out for a ride.”

Interesting. “You have a horse in my world as well.”

“Yeah? What’s it like?”

“It’s black I think. You ride it into battle, it’s a war horse. So it always wears armor when I see it. And you decorate it with skulls. By the way, what’s up with your, let’s call it ‘obsession’, with skulls?”

Leo blanches and swallows. “I simply think they look neat. It’s an aesthetic.”

Takumi looks over to Leo and makes sure he sees him raising an eyebrow. “I don’t get it.”

“Well, it’s like the clothes you think look good, or the music you like, or the colors. It’s your style. And I’ve always been fond of blacks and purples, and of skulls and bats and monster designs, simply for aesthetically pleasing reasons.”

“You know, I still don’t get it.” Why would anyone make a conscious choice to think creepy stuff is _neat_? Takumi mulls this over, worrying his bottom lip unconsciously while thinking.

* * *

When they arrive in town, Leo says, “Let’s go to the cinema.”

“What’s that?” Takumi asks, frowning.

Leo’s smiling at him. “You’ll find out soon enough.”

Crossing his fingers, Takumi prays it won’t turn out to be something Nohrian and terrible. He follows Leo until they arrive at a building aptly displaying a sign reading ‘Cinema’. It looks just like a store front, but instead of advertising apples and pomegranates and tomatoes, they are advertising people. Uh. He must be mistaken. At least there aren’t any prices displayed.

When he follows Leo inside, though, Takumi finds out this cinema thing is different from anything he’s expected or ever seen. High ceilings are the most normal aspect here (and those he knows from buildings at home). There are more posters, colorful statues of weirdly dressed humans and… vaguely humanoid beings, long counters with tired-looking employees (and it’s only like, noon, or maybe early afternoon), many flashing screens.

And a Leo belatedly realizing, “Oh. We’ll have to wait for another two hours.”

“Which means?”

“The movie I wanted to see with you runs in two hours, not right now.” Leo pulls back the sleeve on his right arm to check his watch. “I always screw up times. Why do hours have to be measured in twelves and not tens?”

Takumi sighs and crosses his arms. “So we have two hours to kill now.”

“Yes.” Leo pulls his sleeve back down and regards Takumi with the same kind of exasperation Takumi feels. “Any suggestions?”

Before Takumi can open his mouth, his stomach chimes in with a loud rumble. His face turns beet-red. Leo chuckles. Which isn’t helping Takumi regain a normal color for his face. “We should eat something. We’ve been walking for over an hour, and isn’t it close to lunch anyway?”

“A sound idea. I could do with something to eat as well.” They leave the cinema. “I’d like to take you out.”

What hangs unsaid between them in the air is something Takumi’s only too aware of: It’s not like he has any money and can pay for anything himself, anyway.

“What is theater like in Hoshido?” Leo asks, leading the way who knows where.

“Actors perform plays on a stage. There’s usually music and the actors wear masks or heavy make-up. The plays are usually funny, but the lower classes criticize the government.” Takumi taps on his chest. “My family. It’s distressing when you find out that commoners make fun of you or your parents. Oh, and we have puppet theaters? But it’s usually not for children.”

“I see. We have traditional theater here, too, but I’m too used to movies. I have problems understanding what everyone says on stage.”

“Perhaps your theaters are built badly and the buildings screw with the acoustics?” At Leo’s unamused look, Takumi quickly adds, “I’ve never had problems understanding the actors.”

“Like I said, I think I’m simply too used to how movies sound. Anyway, we’re here.”

They’re standing in front of a restaurant. Takumi’s aware of Leo watching him closely when they enter the restaurant, but he doesn’t know what he’s looking for. Well, there are koi. It smells a little like home although Takumi misses the distinct smell of seafood.

Leo grimaces. Takumi turns towards him and asks, “What’s wrong?”

“I hope this doesn’t offend you. You look kind of East Asian so… maybe Hoshido is like China or Japan or something like that? And this is a Chinese restaurant. I thought you’d like it here.”

Takumi raises an eyebrow. He doesn’t know those places.

“Is going here racist?” Leo asks in a feeble voice.

Takumi snorts. “Everything about Nohrians is racist.”

“Which sounds racist to me, you know.”

Takumi sticks his tongue out at Leo who just shakes his head. Yeah, this is childish, but it feels so good to be able to do this and not get scolded or punished for it!

They sit down at a table, Takumi with his back against the wall. Taking a menu, Leo points at the Chinese characters printed alongside Nohrian script. “Can you read this?”

Squinting, Takumi tries to. “I can read a few of these characters, but I can’t make sense of the majority of them. I couldn’t tell you what’s written there.”

“Hm.” Leo takes the menu back and rifles through it. Apparently having settled on a dish, he hands it to Takumi. “You can eat with chopsticks here.”

Takumi can’t keep his grin from forming.

* * *

“What’s up with that ring in your lip anyway?” Takumi asks as he’s digging into his food. It’s not Hoshidan—like he suspected, the seafood is suspiciously absent—but it’s still good. “I’ve been wondering about that thing ever since I first recognized you on the day I ran into you and Elise.”

“Okay, what do you want to know?” Leo is eating like the Nohrian he is—with a fork and a knife.

“Doesn’t it ever get in the way of speaking, eating, and so on?”

“No.” Leo smiles. “It’s just a small band of metal that’s always between my lips,” he opens his mouth and tilts his head so Takumi can see, and quite honestly, looking into another man’s mouth like this is kinda disgusting. “I don’t even notice it.”

“Then why wear it?”

Leo shrugs. “It compliments my style, wouldn’t you say?”

“You mean the skulls?”

Leo laughs. “Yes, those too. It’s just,” he lays a hand flat on his chest, “part of who I am.”

Takumi rolls his eyes. “I have a skeleton inside me, too.” Leo laughs even more, causing Takumi to flush with anger. “Is wearing black part of your style, too?”

“Yes.”

“Hm. You prefer dark clothes in my world, too.” At least from what’s Takumi’s seen—which isn’t more than Leo’s armor. “You appear to have a tendency to wear your collar inside-out. I’ve seen it at least twice.”

Leo blushes at this notion. “Well, getting properly dressed up can be rather fretful.”

Takumi grins a little. So this Leo screws up his collars as well, huh. “And what’s up with your make-up?”

Leo’s back to being impassive and shrugs. “I like it.”

“Part of your style?”

“Yes.”

Takumi doesn’t understand, but what the hell. What does it matter?

* * *

“I’m uncomfortable with you paying for everything,” Takumi says after they exit the restaurant and walk back to the cinema. Leo has, of course, paid for both of their meals.

“You don’t have any money on you.”

Takumi grits his teeth. “I know.”

“And I’m covered anyway. I mean, yes, the money’s been tighter ever since the death of my father—”

“My condolences,” Takumi says, still through clenched teeth. Good riddance to Garon.

“Ah, thank you. We haven’t been close for a good while before his death so it’s fine. Anyway, money is one of the reasons I share my apartment with Niles and Odin.”

“This doesn’t make me feel better at all.”

“I’m sorry. But I assure you I have enough money to pay for you for quite a while now. There isn’t anything or anyone else I’d spent it on instead.”

“You could save it.”

Leo half-shrugs. “It won’t matter once I’m finished with school and the money will last that long.”

“If you say so…”

“Yes. Refraining from buying a car also saves me quite a lot. And speaking if which…” Leo pulls out his phone. “Ah, Camilla’s texted back that she’s free tomorrow. We can check the address printed on your ID then, if you’d like.”

“Yes!” Of course Takumi wants to. Perhaps he’ll find more than a clue and someone he knows lives there. He could move out from Leo’s—which also means no chores—and live with his retainers like Leo, or with his siblings like he did at home. Leo chuckles, entering the cinema together with Takumi. “So, what is this place exactly? They aren’t selling… services, are they?”

Leo gives Takumi a look that makes Takumi flush with shame. “I don’t even want to know. They’re showing movies here. A cinema is a movie theater.”

“But what’s a ‘movie’?”

“It’s like theater, but recorded and then played back on a screen.”

“This sounds sub-par.”

“Oh, you can add a lot of effects, music and the likes. Just try one with me and maybe you’ll find you’ll like them.”

Leo’s the one who buys the tickets (duh) and funny white… cloud thingies, on top of beverages in weird cups with lids, straws not actually made from straw jutting out of them. They enter one of the showrooms, Takumi sitting down where Leo tells him to, and Leo taking the seat next to his. The room does indeed kind of look like a theater, or an opera showroom.

While they wait for the movie to start, Takumi reluctantly pops one of the clouds in his mouth. It’s publicly available food, so it can’t be poison… They taste all right. Sipping from the straw, the liquid inside the cup is a little too sweet for him, but he’ll manage. Leo, meanwhile, is stuffing himself like this ‘food’ is the real reason they’ve come here, and it’s definitely a sight and a behavior Takumi did not expect him to show.

And Leo’s eating this, too, so this really can’t be poison.

Takumi wants to smack himself. He wants this line of thought to stop. Sure, he’s only been here for not even a week, and staying with Leo for only half that time, but the Leo sitting next to him and stuffing his face with miniature clouds seems genuinely concerned for Takumi’s well-being. That’s a whole 180 from what he’s like in Takumi’s world. Or… is it? Perhaps things would be different if Hoshido and Nohr had worked together instead of against each other…

Before Takumi can chase this line of thought, the movie starts. And, despite everything, Takumi _loves_ it—not the storyline itself, but how movies work fascinates him to no end! It’s like theater but different, and this is where it finally clicks and Takumi realizes why Leo had asked him about theater in Hoshido.

Anyway, the people have been recorded along with the sound, which makes it easier to see what’s going on and to hear what’s being said. There are explosions, making Takumi wonder if it’s magic or if this is some sort of trick. And the acting is different from what he’s used to as well: Instead of overplaying everything so it’s easy to see on the stage, from a distance, the acting here looks… well, natural.

Takumi’s engrossed in the techniques, leaning forward in his seat and forgetting all about his edible clouds and beverage. Which isn’t so bad because Leo’s apparently a slut for them.

Takumi can’t even feel disappointed once the movie ends because his excitement is getting the better of him. Leo smiles at his rambling reenactments of his favorite scenes and says, “I’m glad you finally found something worthwhile in this world.”

* * *

On their way home, Leo tries and fails to talk with Takumi about the movie’s contents proper. Apart from the four scenes Takumi remembers vividly, he didn’t pay attention to the movie’s storyline itself. So Leo steers the conversation in another direction by asking, “What do you do in Hoshido, exactly? Do you go to school as well?”

“Uh, no. I never had public tuition. I’m a prince.”

“What? You should’ve said so sooner!” Takumi glances over to Leo. A blush is coloring the other man’s cheeks. “I have probably treated you disgracefully.”

Takumi snorts. “What does it matter? It’s not like I can make use of any of my princely rights here, can I?”

“Yeah, but—”

“And I think I told you to fuck off a few days ago, which is way worse than how you’ve treated me in the same time frame.”

“And this matters how?”

“You’re a prince, too, where I come from.”

“Wait, what? Are we like,” Leo looks discomforted, “cousins?”

Takumi bursts out laughing. Bitch, he’d be discomforted, too, if they were! “Nooo, no, no, no. We’re from different royal families. From different countries. You’re Nohrian, so you come from Nohr.”

“Ah, yes, ‘Nohrian’ is what you called Elise and me…”

“Yep. And I’m Hoshidan, from Hoshido.”

“Do the countries share a border? Or is it like here, where East Asia is really far away?”

“Uh, Hoshido and Nohr share a border, yes. It’s been the subject of too many disputes to count, and Nohr is currently invading Hoshido. We’re at war. Which is why I am confused because I can’t stand the guts of the Leo from my world.” Leo stops dead in his tracks, Takumi halting a few steps further on. He turns around. “What’s wrong?”

“This is a lot to take in, you know. I didn’t know you know me from a rival royal family from rival nation, pitted against yours.”

Takumi hangs his head. “Sorry. This is a subject that’s kinda hard to approach, you know?”

“But I understand your situation better now. You want to go home to defend your homeland, correct?”

“Yes. I’m indispensable as a skilled archer. Hoshido needs me.” At least, he hopes this is true. Takumi can’t stop the nagging doubt he’s here because he’s not needed, or not needed anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for 500+ views! The next update will be on September 18!


	8. Chapter 7

Leo’s idea for breakfast sounds… odd. He’s convinced a tomato salad with mozzarella and balsamico is the right thing to eat in the morning, and without further ado, he’s started preparing it. The coffee machine is humming its desolate tune as the door to the kitchen opens and a man with short blond hair steps in. Odin.

And that’s that for a nice, quiet breakfast.

“Being humbled by your presences at this early hour? The stars have aligned!”

Takumi hides his face behind his hands. Is he going to be subject to _this_ as long as he has to stay here? Well, it mightn’t be too long, if the address turns out to be a success. Good riddance in advance.

“Ah, good morning, Odin,” Leo says, spraying pepper on his salad and placing the bowl on the kitchen table.

“The best morning to you! And who might this newcomer be?” Odin sounds like someone who’s announcing another’s act on stage.

Takumi, sighing, removes his hands from his face. “I’m Takumi.”

“Odin Dark,” Odin holds out a hand to Takumi and he reluctantly shakes it, “pleased to make your acquaintance.” Odin’s fluttering around the kitchen like a moth and settles on the coffee machine. “Whose is this?” he asks, taking the full cup.

Leo puts some salad onto his plate and answers, “Mine. Takumi doesn’t like coffee.”

Odin draws in breath so sharply that his shock looks comically overexaggerated. “I am appalled!”

“We can see that clear as day.” Leo nudges the salad bowl towards Takumi who thinks being occupied doing something other than listen to Odin seems like a sound idea.

“What about tea, though?” Odin asks, hand holding his chin as if he can find the answer to his question if his just thinks about it long enough.

“Yeah, that’s an option,” Takumi says despite his reservations. The salad alone is not as convincing as Leo thinks.

“Delightful! Let me introduce you then to my cauldron.” Odin steps away from the table to rummage through one of the shelves. Takumi looks at Leo who nods at him, then stands up and goes to Odin. “Aha!” Odin emerges with a tea kettle and sets it next to the oven. “I have a lot of special brews, only accessible to people who have passed the Test of the Eye.”

“Okay?” Takumi doesn’t know what to think of any of this, so he keeps his mind blank.

Odin leans towards him, making Takumi take a step back, eyes darting all over his face and settling on a place between his eyes. “You have passed the Test.”

“So I may drink one of your… brews?”

“Exactly.” Odin opens another shelf—it’s not locked or anything—and takes out a tray with various small glass bottles, sealed with lids on top. “These are my ingredients. Let us brew something especially for this occasion to initiate you.”

Odin makes Takumi pick ingredients he’d like in his tea and works his ‘magic’, as he calls it. Takumi can sit down and grab a few bites of Leo’s salad, which doesn’t taste so bad after all, then gets served his tea. “Thank you.”

“Do not thank me just yet! Take a careful sip and experience the taste of Heaven made tangible!”

Takumi doubts ‘tangible’ is the correct word to describe a liquid with… Still, he takes the cup and gives the tea an experimental sniff before dipping his tongue into it. It’s still hot enough to burn the tip of his tongue but the taste more than makes up for it. “It’s fantastic.”

Odin gives him the smuggest grin, sits down at the table with a circular pastry lacking the middle part of it and takes a bite from it. Leo’s been watching them silently, sipping on his coffee, and Takumi just knows he’s doing it to hide a smile. Or worse, a smirk. Whatever.

“Is Niles home as well?” Leo asks after a few minutes of them just chewing or sipping, attention on Odin.

“This is a rare occasion of knowledge eluding me! However, I do see something through the haze in my mind’s eye!” Odin closes his eyes, putting the tips of all his fingers to his forehead. “Could it be he spent the night with someone at their place?”

Neither Leo nor Odin seem worried or disturbed by this. Takumi asks, “Does he do this regularly?”

Leo hums in an affirmative. “Mhm.” Takumi shifts in his seat. “Is everything okay?” Leo asks.

“Yes. I’m just…” Takumi picks at his salad. He can’t mention his world in front of Odin. “I’m not sure if sleeping around like this is really okay.”

Leo shrugs. “Niles’s preoccupations are neither my problem nor of my concern.”

Odin gives Takumi an incredulous look. Whelp. “Might you be intending to wait until marriage to have sex?”

Takumi feels his face heat up. He exists the kitchen—he’s so not up to that talk, and especially not with Odin.

He’s still in the hallway when he hears Leo say, “You can’t say something like this in front of him.”

“Does his custom forbid him? Is it improper?”

“Does it matter? He’s uncomfortable.”

A chair scrapes against the floor when Takumi opens the door to Leo’s room.

“Wait,” Leo says. Turning around, Takumi finds him standing in the doorway to the kitchen. “Don’t leave. I want to apologize for Odin’s behavior. I already told him off.”

Takumi sighs. “I heard. And it’s all right.”

“Let’s go back to the kitchen.” Takumi’s glad Leo doesn’t press him and follows his nod towards the room.

As soon as Takumi enters the kitchen, Odin folds his hands together in a gesture of prayer and leans forward. For a second, Takumi thinks he wants to beg on his knees, but Odin remains standing. “I am hereby apologizing humbly for my prior behavior. Unaware I might be steering the conversation into dangerous territory, I pressed on and overstepped my boundaries. I seek to assure you that I am _not_ a tease—Leo and especially Niles need a calling as well.”

“Ah, yes.” Takumi isn’t sure what else to say. Odin opens one of his eyes and Takumi adds, “Apology accepted.” Only then does Odin rise to his full height again. “By the way, I kinda noticed something when you were discussing Niles just now.”

“What do you mean?” Leo asks. He’s sitting at the table and eating the last of his salad. Takumi joins him—a guilty feeling makes him finish his portion as well, and there’s still tea to be had. Odin trails after him, sitting down as well.

“You said he’s with ‘someone’ at ‘their’ place. You’re avoiding pronounce when you’re talking about his affairs.” Leo raises an eyebrow. Takumi raises one as well. “Is he a… a gay?”

Odin hides his mouth behind a hand and Takumi doesn’t know if he’s grimacing or laughing. Takumi’s cheeks flare. Why is this embarrassing him?

“There is something you should know and you don’t seem to have figured it out by yourself so far,” Leo says. This sounds ominous. “Everyone in this household is at least bi-curios.” Leo’s eyes flicker to Odin. “Well, ‘curios’ in Odin’s case.”

Odin smiles meekly. “A lack of courage destines me to this label.”

“Wait a second,” Takumi says. “Does this mean you’re all into… men?”

“And women,” Leo says. “But yes, into men, too.”

Takumi doesn’t know what to think anymore. He’s been convinced everyone here is straight, especially Leo. Or rather, he thought Leo isn’t interested in romance, period. He is at least in his world. Takumi’s sure. Or is he? What if he just interpreted things wrong in the cases of many people he knows, just because his own straightness blinded him?

“Well, how come that you non-heterosexuals attract each other—as in, are you automatically friends with each other and stuff? Shouldn’t someone here be… you know, straight?”

Leo shrugs. “It just happens. You talk about it with your friends and realize that, hey, you’re sharing a lot more interests than you assumed at first.” Odin snorts. “Yeah, especially in his case.” Leo points a thumb at Odin. “Being open about our sexual preferences is how Niles and I got Odin to question himself in the first place.”

“Sadly, it is true.” Odin holds a hand to his heart. “Do not fret, though, Takumi. You can be our token straight.”

Leo frowns and checks his phone. “Anyway, Takumi, Camilla is going to come within the next hour to pick us up.”

“If we are to part this early in the day,” Odin says and loses his melodramatic voice to quickly ask, “does one of you two wanna join our pen and paper group this evening?”

“No, thank you,” Leo says. “I have to get up early for school tomorrow.”

If Leo doesn’t go… “Me neither, sorry.” What’s so special about a pen and a piece of paper anyway? What is this group going to do? Stare at office utensils all night? Sounds like fun… not. Finding his home, his family, his friends—at least two of the three, Takumi hopes—sounds way more exciting.

Odin shrugs. “Your loss.” At least he doesn’t sound mad.

* * *

There isn’t much to do to pass the time until Camilla’s set to come and pick them up. Instead of getting dressed and having to wait until she arrives, Leo bids Takumi into his room. “I could show you my music collection.”

Well, why not? Leo shows Takumi a shelf with lots and lots of glass or paper cases containing either smaller disks with one reflective surface or bigger black ones. “What’s that?” Takumi asks.

“Mostly CDs,” Leo says, indicating the smaller discs. “But I do possess some vinyl records, like this one, for instance.” He taps on one of the big black ones.

Leo must be making this up. There can’t possibly be music on these frisbees. But Leo puts one of the ‘CDs’ into a device and presses a button, and actual sounds come out of it!

There’s another reason for Takumi’s shock, though: Leo’s taste in music is really, _really_ weird. Takumi can’t even tell what kind of instruments can produce sounds such as these. But the way Leo softly hums along (and he’s not tone deaf, thank the gods) puts a small smile on Takumi’s face nonetheless.

* * *

The doorbell rings. Leo moves to open the doors, and expectedly, it’s Camilla, climbing the stairs with heels looking ready to punch holes into granite. “Good morning, darlings,” she greets, pulling Leo into a hug.

He hugs her back. “Hey.”

Takumi takes a step back. He doesn’t want to be hugged, and he doesn’t want to feel Camilla’s… _bosom_ pressed against him, either. Also, it’s humiliating that Camilla’s taller than him, even without her heels that elevate her to over Leo’s height, probably Odin’s.

“You two don’t look quite ready to me,” Camilla says.

“Give us two more minutes.”

Takumi uses the time to dash to the bathroom to make sure he won’t have to pee during the ride. When he comes out again, Leo’s already tying his tall boots, so Takumi pulls on his dirty shoes as well. They should’ve bought a new pair along with the underwear…

“Now I’m ready,” Leo says, turning to Takumi. “You, too?”

“Yes.”

“You have the address?” Camilla asks.

Takumi fingers the wallet in his sweater’s pocket. “Yes.”

“Then let’s not dawdle anymore.” Camilla leads the way down the stairs and out of the house. Leo grabs his keys and checks his pants’ pocket for his phone before following her, Takumi pulling the door closed behind him as the last one to leave.

On the way to her car Camilla scrutinizes Takumi, and he glares back at her. What’s her problem? Didn’t think a Hoshidan knew dirt from hygiene?

They get into the car, Leo sitting in the front next to Camilla, which means Takumi has the back row all to himself. “What’s the address?” Camilla asks, tapping on some device built into her car, apparently used for divination. Takumi pulls out the ID and tells her, and she enters the address, the divination device telling her where to go. “Thanks.” She starts driving, and Takumi grips the soft padding of the back row. “So, Leo, how’s school?”

So they start talking about school. Couldn’t they have done that the day they picked up Takumi? Has so much happened since then? It’s not like Leo was in school the past three days… Pouting, Takumi crosses his arms. This is stupid. How is he supposed to take part in the conversation when it’s obvious these stupid Nohrians want to exclude him? And worst of all, they don’t even notice. Being left out hurts but Takumi resolves not to let it show in Camilla’s car, with her of all people present.

At least this keeps the motion sickness at bay, although having to puke in the car would’ve been a funny way to get them to talk with him. But the attention he’d get then would probably be a bit too much for him, anyway.

* * *

Camilla stops her car. “We’re there,” she says, pretty much repeating the divination device’s chime of having arrived at their destination.

Takumi bites his lower lip, passing through his anxieties from the car ride again: He might see this world’s counterparts of his family, or of his friends. How should he act? What should he do? He only realizes he spaced out when Leo puts a firm hand on his shoulder and asks, “Takumi?”

“I—I’m fine.” Takumi takes three tries to unlock the seating belt before he stumbles out of the car. They’ve been driving for over an hour and the extended sitting along with the shaking nature of car rides have turned his legs to jelly. “I’m fine,” he repeats himself and stands up straight, taking a deep breath. He has to regain his composure.

They are standing on a gravel path leading to a lone house situated pretty much in the middle of nowhere—there are only yellow fields with sunburnt grass and dead stalks of plants surrounding it. “I’m surprised your nav picked up this place,” Leo says. “And that you found it without taking a wrong turn once.”

Camilla ruffles through Leo’s hair, making him turn red and stepping away from her. Leo pats his hair with his hands until every strand is neatly in place again. “This place stands out so much it’s hard to miss.”

Ignoring the siblings’ conversation, Takumi looks around in disgruntlement. What should have posed as the garden surrounding the house looks like it could do with a trim, although the weeds haven’t taken over completely yet. Still, it looks bad. The lone driveway up to the house is done in gravel, with weeds having successfully fought a way through the cracks between the individual stones, too. Behind the house—barn, shed, whatever—lie fields for agricultural purposes, showing the same signs of disuse as the garden and the driveway. Takumi is less than impressed. Do people actually live here? Does _he_ live here?

“Come on,” Leo says, and Takumi follows his voice to see him standing not too far away from him. Leo starts walking and Takumi lets him take the lead until they arrive at the house’s door.

Camilla’s standing in front of it and ringing the doorbell. Once. Twice. Too many times. She keeps pressing the bell button. “No one’s opening.”

“Maybe the bell isn’t connected to anything in the house,” Leo says. “Have you heard it?”

“No…” Camilla pouts.

The windows of the house haven’t gone blind or have so much as cracked, but the whole area has an air of neglect surrounding everything. Takumi wouldn’t be surprised if this endeavor turned out to be a dead end, too. Stepping up to Camilla, he tries the door handle but it doesn’t budge. He checks the bell again—it looks weird but that doesn’t come as a surprise. He says, “There aren’t even names posted anywhere to indicate who might live here.”

“Honestly?” Camilla says, taking a few steps to the right to peak inside the window. “I don’t think anyone lives here. The place looks abandoned.” She tries the door too, applying more force than Takumi. “Locked. Let’s walk around the house and look for another way in.”

“And if we don’t find one?” Takumi asks.

Camilla fixes him with a sweet smile. “Oh, I’m not above kicking in the door.”

Takumi looks down at her heels again and gulps. These things could murder a man.

“Let’s split up,” Camilla says. “I’ll take the right side of the house while you two will check the left side. We’ll meet at the back and share what we’ve found.”

“All right,” Takumi says and trails after Leo to the left side of the house. Apart from some more windows, one with an eerie curtain hanging in front of it from the inside and obscuring everything in that room, nothing in particular stands out on this side of the house. What a disappointment.

Camilla’s already waiting at the back. “The right side only has a few windows,” she says.

Leo nods. “The left side’s the same.”

“Well, here’s another door…” Camilla gestures to exactly that and tries the handle. It’s locked, too. “Aw, I really will have to kick in the front door.” Sighing, Camilla heads back to the front of the house.

“Wait,” Takumi says when Camilla’s already rounded the corner to the house’s front. Before he can say anything more, Camilla has already connected her heel with the door and proceeds to kick it in. Leo seems nonplussed. Takumi refreshes his memory he has from Camilla from home and vows to never cross this woman.

The door gives with a crunch, and another, and another, the wood splintering where Camilla’s heel leaves indentations in it. The wood around the lock splinters as well and fails, the door swinging open with a loud creak. Camilla wipes her hands on each other even though she didn’t use them for her feat…

She steps in first, Leo and Takumi close on her heels. It’s not exactly dark on the inside of the house, but a dusty yellow shimmer seems to permeate every room. And it’s dusty all right: Every surface Takumi looks at or wipes his finger across is coated in dust, the windows are slowly going blind from the inside from the lack of cleaning, and the wooden floorboards creak with every step he takes.

“This house looks like scenery from a horror movie,” Leo says drily.

Camilla chuckles. “The house just doesn’t look lived in.” She gestures at the floor. “There aren’t even footprints on the floor. It’s completely covered in dust.”

The rooms aren’t much different from what the hallway has to offer: dust, old furniture, sheets draped over shelves and chairs. The shelves and cupboards are all empty. The kitchen and the bathroom don’t have working faucets and, according to Leo, look like from a catalogue from the fifties. Okay.

The house actually has two floors, but the upper one doesn’t reveal anything either. It’s just a cramped attic, not much more, and the house doesn’t have a set of stairs leading down. And anyway, one trip was enough for Takumi—the wooden floorboards of the stairs creak as if they’ll give any second now.

There isn’t anything here. No people, no, but also no photos, no paper clippings, not even a landline. Takumi’s heart aches.

“Does anything here ring a bell with you?” Camilla asks. It’s like she’s rubbing salt in the wound.

“No,” Takumi says, shaking his head.

“You have to admit, though, this is all rather convenient—you wake up with no recollection of a life here, no idea where you are, and a fake address printed on your probably equally fake ID led us into the middle of nowhere.”

“I’m not a criminal!” Takumi grinds his teeth, hands clenching into fists.

“Hey, stop it,” Leo says, putting a hand on Takumi’s shoulder. He almost jumps from the sudden contact and has to try hard not to punch Leo’s jaw. “Let’s go home. We won’t find any clues here.”

“I like this idea,” Camilla says and takes the lead, not bothering to check the door she’s broken in earlier as she leaves the house and makes for her car. Leo ushers Takumi out and pulls the door closed, although the broken wood around the look prevent it from shutting.

Takumi is glad he has the back row to himself this time around. He’s still fuming, but all the same he’s glad to find his motion sickness seems to be a thing of the past. He only realizes he’s fallen asleep when his face greets him in a reflection.

* * *

A soft ripple coming from the wind that’s blowing over the water distorts his face from time to time, but Takumi can make out his features in his reflection in the lake just fine. His hair isn’t tied up and hangs down his shoulders, his lips are curved upwards, and his eyes look as red as fresh blood. His favorite color.

He’s stripped off his clothes already and stored them in the crevice he sleeps in to keep them out of sight of potential scouts flying over this place. He himself can always hide in a heartbeat if the need arises. If.

Takumi steps into the lake. The water is cold, close to freezing, and yet it soothes the stiffness in his muscles and washes over his wounds in a gentle touch—the coldness doesn’t feel bad at all, no, it’s right, it’s perfect. Taking a breath, albeit not a deep one, Takumi plunges onward and dives under the surface. He keeps his eyes closed for a few downward strokes, then opens them and relishes in the pain the coldness brings with itself, too.

The pain in his aching joints, the pain from the wounds barely scabbed but still oh so fresh, the pain of his eyes open in the water, the pain of the spreading numbness that comes with being cold, the pain in his lungs as they crave air. And Takumi keeps denying them and feels the pain of your lungs filling with water. He’s choking and it’s wonderful.

Laughter rises in his throat and his lungs spasm with the effort of pumping water out while Takumi breathes in more. He doesn’t know how far he can go with this body, this vessel, but he figures he shouldn’t push it. It’d be too much of a waste, considering all the effort and grooming that went into it.

Propelling himself upwards with his feet and the last of his remaining strength, Takumi reaches the surface and coughs out the water. He’s hiccuping, still laughing, and his sides start to hurt now too. The world is spinning around him, and it’s kinda hard to stay afloat and not accidentally dip back into the water.

He waits until the bouts of pain and laughter and nausea pass. His hands and feet have gone numb, not even throbbing with pain anymore, by the time he deems himself ready for a second go at this. Maybe he’ll hold out a little longer this time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will go live on October 2nd!


	9. Chapter 8

Choking and almost drowning over and over again in your nightmare apparently makes you sleep so deeply that you won’t hear the alarm clock blaring. At least, this is true for Takumi, as he only wakes up once Leo, crouching by his mattress, shakes him on the shoulder. “Good morning,” he greets as Takumi opens his eyes and retreats further into his blanket.

“Don’t touch me,” he mutters.

Leo takes his hand off Takumi’s shoulder. Ignoring both Takumi’s words and his evident state of just having been roused, he says, “Believe it or not, I have school today. Would you like to join me?” Takumi burrows deeper into the blanket, although he can’t help he’s awake now. “If you think it’s too boring or tedious, I can bring you home if the need arises—I have a free slot at 12, and you’re not in possession of a key.” Right. No wandering around without supervision… “If not, you’re free to hang around me all day but you must under no circumstances distract him from the lectures.”

Takumi rolls his eyes at Leo when he has his back turned, and struggles out of his blanket rolled around him.

* * *

Leo’s school bag is already packed. “I’m going to add an extra banana for you,” he says, even if Takumi doesn’t know what that’s supposed to mean. Apparently, it’s some kind of fruit. Will he even need it? Leo’s said they can have lunch together, and they just finished breakfast.

They leave the kitchen and pull their shoes and jackets on. Taking his key, Leo takes the lead as they leave the house.

“You haven’t been to the subway yet, have you?” Leo asks once they’re outside and start walking down the street.

“No, and I don’t have a clue what it’s supposed to be.” Takumi’s mouth draws into a line. Why does he always feel so ignorant here? Well, the answer to that is obvious, but why does his body make him feel stupid and useless for it? It’s tiring.

“Well,” Leo answers, “it’s basically a train but it runs underground, so it doesn’t get in anyone’s way. And it’s fast.”

“Faster than a car?”

“In town, yes. You have to imagine,” Leo gestures with his hands and it somehow does help Takumi picture everything, “there’s nothing in the train’s way. There isn’t any traffic down there, the train just goes in a more or less straight line. So it has the option of going faster than aboveground.”

Takumi bites his lip. His hands are sweaty and he wipes them on his shirt. “Do you think I can handle it?”

“The speed? Yes. But what I think could turn out to be a problem that the subway is, let’s say, popular. So there _will_ be masses of people, and I’m afraid you might not take to this circumstance.”

Takumi frowns. He doesn’t want to use the subway anymore if it’s going to be like this. Still, Leo has to go to school and maybe it’s not so bad after all. It’s just a guess on his part, right? “We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.”

* * *

Takumi’s confident front—a farce, really—crumbles as soon as they have descended the steps to the subway station.

So far, Leo hasn’t said anything, but Takumi can tell he’s thinking the same thing: His worst fears are proven correct. Takumi can’t help it—he wants to flee but finds himself in a throng of people, and anyway, he shouldn’t be an inconvenience to Leo, so he can’t run away. Or even walk away. He also doesn’t want to cling to Leo like a little kid, so he merely walks half beside, half behind Leo so as to not lose sight of him.

They’re not even on the platform when Leo puts an arm around Takumi’s shoulders. Takumi draws in a sharp breath, freezing for a second before resuming his walk, now fully next to Leo.

Leo leans his head towards Takumi and says in a soothing voice, “Everything is going to be fine.” His eyes briefly flicker to Takumi. “What’s wrong?”

Takumi bites his lip. “I don’t want to talk about it,” he says between lips pressed together, and thankfully Leo doesn’t press him, just steer him towards the boarding platform.

A train halts not even after half a minute of them having to wait, and they get on it. It’s so crowded in there that not getting a seat doesn’t even turn out to be a problem—you can’t fall, you’re just swaying to the side and leaning into another person. Which is incredibly uncomfortable, but Takumi thinks he manages quite well, considering his condition and his former problems with motion sickness.

After three stops, they get off the train, and Leo looks just as relieved as Takumi feels. Still, as soon as they leave the subway station and breathe in fresh air, both sigh, and it’s a sigh at least Takumi hasn’t realized he’s been holding.

“It wasn’t so bad after all,” Takumi says. His hands are burrowed into his shirt’s pocket, thumbs rubbing against the bowstring.

Leo grins at him. “Are you sure?” Takumi grinds his teeth. How dare him act so superior now! “Come on, let’s get moving.”

The campus isn’t located far from the subway station—in fact, it’s almost like one of the two places was built on top of the other. Takumi makes sure not to cling to Leo anymore. To further divert his attention from the dreaded subway, Takumi asks, “What are your classes on today?”

Leo goes into a monologue lasting the whole way until they’re seated in a room, talking about every single one of his classes he has this semester. Like he said, most of them are about history, although there are a few classes on literature sprinkled in-between. “I’m almost finished with school, so I have some time to kill. And anyway, they’re good for extra credit.”

The teacher enters the room and the class commences. What Takumi doesn’t know yet is: Neither the names nor the faces of Leo’s teachers are going to ring any bells with him, and his disappointment is going to grow with every new class. Still, he doesn’t give up—he stays the whole day and makes the best of it. Fuck trying to find a way home! Leo’s classes are _interesting_ and Takumi feels a little off at the realization that their tastes overlap quite a bit. He doesn’t comment on it but the look Leo gives him on the way home assures Takumi that Leo knows. Well. Shit.

And he forgot something else: If they want to get home, they’ll have to go through the subway again. Well. _Shit_.

The good: Takumi’s already survived it once.

The bad: Takumi somehow has to go through all that again, and the only person with him is Leo.

At least he manages. He’s very much aware he’s clingy beyond all reason (and despite his earlier nonchalance… it’s just _different_ once you’re out of the situation causing anxiety, then it all looks easy), and he can’t help it anyway so why not roll with it. Leo’s not making fun of him for his behavior and once they’re back on turf Takumi feels comfortable on, he can hold his own even against Leo’s potential spites, thank you very much.

Long story short: Takumi keeps worrying so much that he almost doesn’t notice they’re aboveground again. Almost. As soon as he notices, though, he lets go of Leo’s arm. Leo shoots Takumi a confused look but thankfully doesn’t make a remark.

* * *

“Want to do the groceries with me?” Leo asks, and something dawns in Takumi’s mind. Shit. _Shit!_

There’s the chores table, and one of the chores is doing groceries. So it’s Leo’s turn. But isn’t Takumi supposed to clean the apartment?! He must’ve pushed this aside when he thought he would just live with his family or friends here, but the house turned out to be another dead end, and now Takumi can’t do anything but make a mental note to do the cleaning tomorrow. He will under no circumstances leave for the streets again, staying with a couple of Nohrians be damned.

Anyway, Takumi must have tuned Leo out because the other man’s waving his pad—phone—around. “With the help of an app—that’s a program on the phone—Niles, Odin and I have a shared grocery list. Everyone’s funds are listed as well, and I can put in how much I spend for each item, so I can get the money I forwarded back.”

Takumi nods even though he doubts he gets everything. At least the ‘program’ part is something he doesn’t. And does it matter?

Well, kinda. He’s living off Leo…

They’re already walking down the street, making their way to a market of some kind Takumi expects as he chews on his lower lip.

“What’s wrong?” Leo asks.

Takumi sighs. “I’m only burning your money when at home I’m a prince in a prospering country.” Albeit said country’s currently at war and funds are tight.

“It’s okay. It doesn’t matter to me.”

“Is it really?”

“Yes.” Leo smiles a little. “My family is rather wealthy—we all inherited well. I’m easily the most prosperous in the apartment I share, so it’s easy for me to stem the costs of two people if not more for the time being. And anyway, once I’m done with school, I’ll earn money myself.”

“Yes, but—”

“Takumi, we’ve talked about this already. And if Odin or Niles had anything against your continued presence, they would’ve told me by now.”

“I still feel bad.”

“All right, see, if we can’t figure out your situation and get you home somehow, you can always get a job and pay for your needs yourself. We’d have to forge your graduation papers but that shouldn’t pose a problem. Niles and Odin are probably adept at that sort of thing, come to think of it.” Leo shrugs and Takumi stares at him. What the fuck?

“Are you seriously telling me you’re all right with… breaking the law?” This is so typically Nohrian that Takumi should’ve seen it coming.

“Generally speaking not, but your case is a special one. How are you going to tell the authorities anything? They aren’t going to believe anything you tell them. Most people aren’t.” Catching Takumi’s frown, Leo adds, “Niles and Odin would also be as discreet as you can get anyone to be, so please don’t worry.”

Takumi almost chokes on his spit. Yes. Everything’s true. Nohrians really are not above breaking the law or bending the rules if it fits them.

Leo enters a building, Takumi walking next to him and realizing that _this_ is where you can buy food. Instead of venturing to different merchants specializing in particular goods each, this place accumulates everything you can think of and more, stacked neatly in shelves, sometimes canned or packaged.

Leo grabs a few pieces of fruit, vegetables and navigates the rows of shelves, Takumi trailing behind him. What is this he spots out of the corner of his eye? “Is this a whole menu, in this box?” Takumi asks, tapping at a papaer carton displaying rice and meat.

“Yeah. It looks like instant food. You just have to heat it up.”

“Really?” This seems to be an invention of particular genius. Who would’ve thought there’s something redeeming about this place after all?

Leo frowns. “Don’t eat things like this too often. It’s unhealthy.”

And that’s that about redeeming qualities. “What? Why do they sell it then?”

“Because people like you would buy it.” Leo moves away and makes his way to the exit.

“And how is this unhealthy? It looks perfectly edible to me.”

“They put all kinds of stuff in there to make it taste better and make the meat look fresh even though this thing could’ve been lying in that shelf for weeks.”

“Ew.”

“Yep. Ew. Never trust the pictures, always read the list of ingredients.”

Takumi’s still scanning the shelves, almost bumping into Leo when he suddenly stops, scans his articles and pays for everything. “Isn’t there anything more… Hoshidan here? Or do you only have Nohrian food?”

“Well, maybe you’ll find something you like in the Asia market. We can go there too, if you’d like to.”

“Let’s check it out.”

Leo stashes the groceries in a paper bag he pulls out of his school bag before taking out his phone. “I’ll have to look up where the nearest one is.” It takes him only half a minute, and Takumi silently admits that these phones _are_ impressive. “It’s only a ten minute walk,” Leo says, putting away his phone and waiting for Takumi to fall into step beside him.

* * *

From the outside, the Asia market looks like an unimpressive warehouse of some sorts, even worse than the supermarket. But from the inside, it’s everything Takumi’s been looking for. There’s even instant food basically everywhere Takumi looks!

“Is this what you’ve been looking for?” Leo asks.

“Yes! Not everything here is Hoshidan, but it’s still great. A little weird, though, but the supermarket was weird, too. In Hoshido, you buy food from street vendors and merchants.”

“I see,” Leo says and sneezes. “Sorry. Not used to these spices…”

“They smell a little like home!”

“Do you intend to buy any?”

“Perhaps, but I’m more interested in other Hoshidan ingredients for the time being. But we can always ‘spice up’ your cuisine a little.”

Takumi grins when Leo rolls his eyes at his decidedly bad pun. “Well, I don’t know what to expect, but I’ll agree on buying _some_ spices. Not all of them.”

Leo’s a presumptuous hag. There’s nothing wrong with Hoshidan cuisine! And he hasn’t even tried anything yet. Stupid white man. “C’mon, only a few spices, and some other ingredients. We didn’t come here for nothing.”

Leo rolls his eyes. “I _said_ I’ll buy something. We won’t walk out here empty-handed.” It’s evident to Takumi Leo’s bitten his tongue, swallowed down another remark.

Takumi can’t stay pissed because what he sees in the shelves lifts his spirits higher than Leo can weigh them down. His arms are soon filled with rice, vegetables and spices he associates strongly with home, carrying them to the check-out. Leo obediently pays for everything without mentioning the amount of spices he’s now in possession of.

“There are so many things I want to cook,” Takumi says as Leo’s still packing away the things they bought.

“Do you cook at home?”

“Not often. We have personnel for everything. But when you use your privileges right, the cooks have to let you have the kitchen.”

“You mean you bullied the poor staff into letting you run rampant in the kitchen.”

Takumi balls his hands into fists. “I bet you did that, too.”

“We didn’t have kitchen aides.” Fuck. This is the wrong Leo. The one who was only slightly pampered instead of getting the whole royal package. Takumi clenches his hands even tighter, his nails scraping against his palms. “What do you have in mind?”

“What?”

“You said you have ideas on what to cook. Care to elaborate?”

“I was thinking miso soup for instance? It’s my favorite dish.”

“‘Mee-soh’—”

Takumi snorts. Leo mangling his name’s pronunciation a little is one thing, but he should get his accent under control. Takumi speaks Nohrian perfectly fine, so he’s in the right to expect Leo to work on his Hoshidan, right? “No, ‘miso’.”

Leo frowns, but tries again. “‘Mi-soh’—”

“No! ‘Miso’!”

Leo’s frown deepens. “‘Miso’.”

“Yes!”

“What is this ‘miso’ thing?”

“Miso itself is a paste made from soy beans, grain, and salt,” Takumi explains as they make their way to Leo’s. “You need it for miso soup. But miso soup has many more ingredients such as shiitake and negi and wakame—”

“You know what, Takumi?” Leo interrupts. “I understand only half of what you’re saying. Can’t you just cook and we’ll eat?”

Stupid Nohrians! They don’t even try to understand. “Well, yeah, but I can’t navigate the kitchen on my own. I don’t get all these machine things there so it’d be great it you helped.”

Leo sighs. “I wanted to review my classes but, fine, I’ll help you cook.”

Serves Leo right.

* * *

Neither Niles nor Odin appear to be home (or awake), so they can’t help Takumi cook. Sighing, Leo relents and helps him instead. “At least we’ll only have to prepare food for two people.”

Takumi tries his best not to sour the experience too much for Leo—he wants him to like Hoshidan food. Thankfully, chopping veggies isn’t much different than it is at home and everything smells so familiar that Takumi can ignore the strangeness of the kitchen machines in favor of the result in the making.

He even knows where the bowls and spoons are to set the table with, and once they’re finished, Leo places the pot with the soup in the middle of the kitchen table.

“You don’t have Hoshidan bowls but these should do the job,” Takumi says, sitting down.

He wants to share more of his home, his culture, his traditions and teach Leo some manners by reciting a short prayer before eating, but Leo’s already navigated a filled spoon to his mouth so Takumi swallows down his euphoria. “This is delicious—if a little spicy.”

Takumi can’t hide his grin at this compliment, though. “You’re just weak.”

Leo snorts. “You haven’t seen ‘English cuisine’ then. Only if you can choke that stuff down are you allowed to say anything about my taste buds.”

“I can’t believe it’ll be that bad.”

“It’s that bad.”

Apparently, it’s a challenge. The food battle is on—but not today. Miso soup is quite filling and way too delicious to chase it with something you have to ‘choke down’, to use Leo’s choice of words.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will be up on October 16! If you like the fic so far, please don't be shy and consider leaving a comment!


	10. Chapter 9

Leo’s alarm clock wakes Takumi up for good, but Leo still asks, “Are you awake?” as he rises from his bed.

“Mhm…” Takumi hasn’t slept well, but he never does here anyway. And how can he? He has to sleep on the damn floor.

“Good morning.”

“Mornin’…” Takumi drags himself away from his mattress and gets ready in the bathroom.

When he enters the kitchen afterwards, Leo’s already dressed and setting the table. “Did you sleep well?” he continues their conversation as if Takumi hasn’t walked out on him and done his own things for half an hour.

“Yes,” Takumi lies and leaves it at that. He makes sure to grab his cup of steaming tea as soon as he can so he doesn’t have to elaborate.

“Me, too, although I had the weirdest dream. Odin and I were using gigantic watermelons as a means of transportation. We were rolling down a hill in the woods.” Leo shrugs.

“Well, you could share the dream with him. I’m sure he’ll like it.”

Leo chuckles. “I’ll make sure to keep him informed.” Takumi’s already digging in his stupid Nohrian bread when Leo asks, “Will you join me at school again today?”

“It was really good yesterday but I’ll have to pass.” Takumi’s eyes flicker over to the chores schedule. “I should get to cleaning sooner or later, right?”

Leo shrugs. “Your choice, your miss.” Does he sound pissed? Disappointed? Something in-between? ( _Pissappointed_ , Takumi’s brain supplies, and he wants to smack himself.) “Anyway, make sure you don’t enter anyone’s rooms for cleaning, and please refrain from throwing away anything without having reviewed it first.”

Takumi rolls his eyes. He’s an adult, not a baby. “Yes.”

* * *

Only when Leo’s gone and Takumi left alone—well, he doesn’t know that, but neither Odin nor Niles have made an appearance today so far—does he review the cleaning agents. They smell good enough and they look nice with their colorful liquids, but there are so many warnings printed on them in microscopic print that Takumi grows afraid of using more than simple water. So he starts where he figures water and a little soap from the dispenser will suffice—it’s not like he had to clean a lot at home.

Armed with two towels, Takumi heaves a bucket full of water with generous splashes of soap on the toilet lid and climbs up on it to get to work on the tiny bathroom window. It looks like it’s been ignored all this time, slowly going blind with neglect.

“What the fuck are you doing standing on the toilet?” Niles asks and Takumi almost jumps. “The lid’s gonna break in.”

Takumi half turns around. “I may only stay here if I clean the apartment regularly.” Niles raises an eyebrow and keeps watching Takumi without saying anything. Takumi turns back around and goes back to cleaning the window, wiping it with the dry towel. He checks if Niles is still staring at him. He is, leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed. “What?”

“For starters, I’d like to use the bathroom and I don’t know if you could handle my body in its purest form.” Takumi’s mouth draws into a thin line. He takes his stuff and stalks out of the bathroom. When he passes Niles, Niles says, “Wait.”

“What is it now?” Takumi turns his head in Niles’s direction, body following suit.

“Is that only water and soap and towels?”

“Looks like it.”

“This how you clean _your_ home?”

“Well, this _is_ my home now, so apparently yes.”

Niles rolls his eye. “I mean the home you come from.”

Takumi’s never really cleaned anything in his life apart from his body. “Uh, no?”

“Don’t know where we store the chems?”

Takumi takes a deep breath. He has to talk to Niles—and Odin—anyway. They don’t have to know the whole story. “I found them but… we use other stuff. And there are so many warnings on there that I’m kinda afraid these _chems_ will hurt me.”

“Aw, lemme help you, then.” Niles leaves the doorframe and makes for the kitchen, Takumi following him. Opening a cupboard, Niles takes out a pair of bright pink gloves and hands them to Takumi. “They make your hands feel funny for at least two days but they’ll protect them from the stuff in the cleaning chems.”

“Uh, thanks.” Takumi pulls the gloves on and indeed do his hands feel weird at the touch of the material.

“Chems are in the bathroom. Never mix any two cleaning agents, and only use them for whatever’s printed in big letters or a picture on the front.” They trek back to the bathroom where Niles piles way too many of these cleaning agents in Takumi’s arms. “You might also wanna read the small print again—it certainly can’t hurt. And now, begone.” Niles makes a shooing motion with his hands before hooking his thumbs into the waistband of his pants.

Takumi turns around as fast as he can, slamming the door behind him. He does not want to be privy to _that_. Niles doesn’t lock the door, Takumi notices with dismay, leaving for the kitchen for now.

* * *

Niles turns out to be quite the help, even though he’s only lazing around and giving instructions. But Takumi would _not_ have figured out how the vacuum cleaner works on his own, and he’s glad he can use this thing—after jumping a foot in the air from shock, this thing is _noisy_ —instead of having to wipe the floors by hand.

During his cleaning voyage, Takumi finds a lot of mysterious things that either do not belong where he finds them but in their respective owner’s rooms, or are a puzzle to him as to where they belong. They include:

A whole stock of seeds sits innocently in a box at the top of one shelf in the kitchen. Takumi sniffs at them. They smell as expected—like nothing. And he can’t tell what they are for. The only things he probably could identify in seed form are beans and nuts (duh). And the way the box is placed means that if one person accidentally hits the shelf in whichever way, it’s bound to fall down and make a mess. Takumi, standing on a chair to even reach this far up—much to his own chagrin—carefully sets the paper box down on the kitchen table for further discussion once everyone’s home. Meaning: Whoever identifies this as his can take it with him. Takumi _will_ check the shelf again tomorrow, and take the seeds down again if he finds them in the same position.

In the kitchen, in-between the cookbooks and magazines with recipes, stands one unaffiliated book that has got nothing to do with anything kitchen whatsoever. Takumi doesn’t know what it is—it’s bound in red linen and doesn’t have a title printed on its spine—so he opens it. It’s mythology, he guesses? The pictures look more like something he’d find in his own world than over here, and the book is clearly divided into different stories. It begins with the world’s creation, so it’s not a simple storybook. Well, the pictures are nice, but Takumi can’t see himself being overtly interested in this. Maybe it’ll serve as a read whenever he runs out of novels from Leo… Well, at any rate, Takumi puts the book down next to the box of seeds.

In the living room, Takumi finds a weirdly sticky magazine stacked in-between others about videogames. The sticky magazine isn’t about videogames, though. Oh, no. There are only thinly clad men on the front cover. Takumi checks his surroundings. Niles is nowhere to be seen so he risks a glance—a peep—inside. The front matter is fine but all to soon the men lose the last bit of clothing covering their crotches, and they are all sporting erections. Every single one of them. Sometimes there are even several men on one picture. Takumi shuts the mag as quickly as he can, face red and heart pounding from embarrassment. A shiver runs down his spine. And the stickiness? Ew. Ewww. Takumi’s so thankful for the stupid rubber gloves he’s still wearing. Now, what to do with this? If he throws the magazine away, someone might miss it. If he confronts everyone, he’ll find out who it belongs to, and that’s something Takumi can live without. And if he puts it back, he’s failing his cleaning duty. Despite the gloves, Takumi makes sure to touch the magazine only with two fingertips and throws it in the trash, even going so far as to bury it under other garbage. He’ll pretend he never saw this thing.

Another magazine resides in the stack from before Takumi’s returned to after his… experience. Or, rather, it’s a catalogue especially for ugly sweaters. Takumi plops down on the sofa. After what he found right beforehand, he can take a little time for himself and look through this, right? And, boy, the sweaters in there aren’t simply ugly, some of them are outright atrocious! How they paid the models to wear them is beyond him, and he can’t help snickering from time to time. The only thing left is to find out whose catalogue this is. Whoever’s the owner of this deserves a little medal, Takumi thinks—one he won’t tell anyone about. Oh, and he hopes someone in this household not only looked through this catalogue, but spent actual money on one or more of these atrocities. Takumi’s imagination is running wild as he places the catalogue next to the seed box and the book.

There’s a shelf in the living room, mostly filled with labeled cases—movies, Takumi finds out later—and books on the top, bottles with alcohol on the bottom. And… there’s a funny figure watching everything Takumi does, trapped between two of the movie cases. Takumi doesn’t recognize what it could be—it looks human, but it’s tiny, has blue skin, only four fingers, and wears only pants, shoes and a white hat. Whatever it is, it creeps him out. He carries it into the kitchen after wiping the dust away that’s collected on it over an indefinite amount of time. Apparently, Takumi’s not the only one who doesn’t appreciate this… _thing_.

What Takumi finds under the living room sofa, however, is an altogether new horror story. How no one could have noticed this but the person responsible, he can’t fathom. At first, it looks like an innocent enough box, albeit a smallish one, smaller than the one with the seeds in the kitchen. But there aren’t any seeds in there, no. These are, as the print on the box reads, ‘condoms’. How to use them, and what their purpose is, the box makes quite clear. On further inspection, Takumi also finds out that the box is still unopened, and the best before date… does not align with the year printed on the kitchen calendar. No. These have gone bad. And Takumi doesn’t want to find out what this means. Best to just throw them away and bury them under garbage, like the filthy mag…

And lastly, Takumi finds what he later finds out is called a ‘cartridge’ in the bathroom—square-shaped, bright yellow, a faded sticker on the front, a silver screw in the back, and greenish-silver whatevers located in the bottom part of it, in a small hollow. The cartridge was, for some reason, hidden at the very bottom of the towel rack. Takumi hopes it hasn’t gone bad due to the dampness in bathrooms—he doesn’t know much about electronics, but dampness attracts mold. Placing the cartridge next to the other items in the kitchen, Takumi waits for everyone to get home.

* * *

“I am home!” Odin announces in a booming voice.

Takumi’s left the living room door open and cranes his neck to see into the hallway. He’s working his way through one of Leo’s novels, lying on the sofa. “Hey.”

Odin looks up from taking off his boots and waves towards Takumi. “Is anyone else there?” he asks.

Marking the page he’s on, Takumi sighs with relief. Odin isn’t using with his weird speech. “Niles was here earlier.”

As if on cue, the door to Niles’s room opens. “Did someone say my name?” he asks. His eye falls on Odin and Niles turns his back towards Takumi to pull Odin into a hug. “Hey there, sexy.”

Takumi’s head starts spinning, cheeks flaring. This isn’t happening. Not after his… _encounters_ with certain… _items_. To his relief, the apartment door opens again, Leo stepping inside. It’s like their arriving on schedule. “Hello,” Leo greets and is met with similar greetings in turn. While he takes off his shoes and jacket, Odin and Niles make their way towards the living room—and Takumi.

“Takumi cleaned today,” Niles says, plopping down next to Takumi. Odin takes his other side, causing Takumi to sit straight up with his hands on his thighs.

Odin’s nostrils flare. “I smell the sanitariness!”

Leo enters the living room as Takumi places the book on the table in front of him, and says, “Did you run into any problems?”

Takumi’s already opened his mouth when Niles says, grinning, “I had to introduce him to the vacuum cleaner. And Takumi’s rather skittish with chemical cleaning agents.” Takumi’s cheeks heat up.

Leo nods once. “I can guess.”

“And I also found a couple of things!” Takumi says. Anything to distract them from his former ignorance. “I put them all on the kitchen table.”

“I am in need of nutrients anyway,” Odin says, getting up. Niles and Leo follow him to the kitchen, Takumi coming up last. When he arrives, Odin is already rifling through the things. He turns his face towards Takumi—in tears! “You not only located my smurf figurine, most importantly, your undeniable skill in procuring the items forever lost will save me from further penance for losing my treasured gameboy game from my pre-school days for good!”

Takumi has to go through Odin’s little speech twice before he can make sense of it. Long sentences are terrible. No one should be allowed to speak like this. And Takumi hopes, Odin’s not serious about the ‘penance’ part. Still, he manages a smile. “You’re welcome.”

Niles, meanwhile, is cracking up. “Dude, you found my old catalogue.” Niles rifles through the pages, grinning at the contents. “And thank you for finding my mythology book. Nothing beats some good, old, juicy Greek myths.”

“You’re welcome,” Takumi repeats himself.

“These weren’t lost,” Leo says, pointing at the box of seeds.

Takumi turns his head towards the box, then Leo. “Well, I found them up there,” he points to the top of a shelf, “at the very edge. If anyone bumped against the shelf, they would’ve knocked down the box.”

Frowning, Leo says, “I’ll take care and move them somewhere else.” He grabs the box and walks out of the kitchen. “I’m going to take a shower.” This reminds Takumi—Leo smells funny (meaning… bad).

Trailing after Leo a little, Takumi asks, “Where were you?”

“Oh, with Brünhild.”

Takumi blinks. “The horse?”

“Yes.” Well, that explains his smell.

Leaving Leo to his own devices, Takumi retires to the living room. When he passes the kitchen, he overhears Niles’s and Odin’s plans to cook something spectacular to celebrate their items being back—and in Odin’s case, his life being saved. From what, he doesn’t say. Anyway, if Takumi can get a few more pages in before dinner’s ready, he is all for it. Also, he’s achy. Cleaning really takes one out of you. But Odin’s excitement and Niles’s contentment make it worth it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will go live on November 6!


	11. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nevermind. We're back to 43 chapters (counting the prologue and epilogue).

“Niles would like to do something with you today,” Leo breaks the news over breakfast. As always, he and Takumi are alone in the kitchen. “If you can deal with him sleeping in a little?”

“What about school?” Takumi tries chocolate again and is stirring the beverage with a spoon.

“Oh, would you like to come with me again?” Leo asks. “I thought the subway left such an impression on you you’d rather excuse yourself for today.”

“It’s…” Takumi swallows and hides it by taking a sip from his cocoa. “I can’t talk about it.”

“That’s all right. Just know that your behavior on the subway isn’t just stressing you out—it’s taking a toll on me as well, and I had rather keep these incidents at a minimum, for both our sakes.”

Takumi sighs. He has the faint notion there’s no point in arguing with Leo—he’ll have his way. Takumi rather enjoyed school, though, and he knows Leo way better than either Niles or Odin. At least he sort of had a conversation with Odin before, but Niles remains largely a mystery Takumi’s not sure he wants to solve.

“Since both Odin and Niles keep to weird schedules, you can take the chance and sleep in.”

Takumi snorts. “I’m already eating. I can’t go back to sleep now.”

“Ah, I was afraid I might have silenced you for good with my proposition. You didn’t say anything.” Leo takes out his phone, fingers flying across the display. “I’ll leave a message in the group with Niles and Odin that you’ll stay home today and could do with some company.”

As if, Takumi sneers. He’s nonplussed, but he can’t keep Leo from grabbing his stuff and leaving him to his own devices. At least, Takumi still has the literally rotten note with Leo’s phone number on it.

“If you need anything, call.” Leo jots the number down again as if he’s read Takumi’s thoughts. A shiver runs down his spine. Eerie. “In case a _real_ emergency comes up that neither Niles nor Odin can help you with.”

Ouch. That hurts.

As if all the bad things Takumi’s gone through so far aren’t real, as if his feelings aren’t valid. Typically Nohrian, down-talking someone like this.

“Have a good day,” Leo says before leaving.

“You, too…”

* * *

If he’d been asked two hours ago, Takumi wouldn’t have believed he’d actually follow Leo’s advice and crawl back into his makeshift bed. Even though sleep doesn’t come—or _because_ it doesn’t—dozing helps Takumi rest.

A series of knocks pull him out of it. “Come in,” Takumi says, sounding sleepier than intended.

He sits up and watches Niles enter and close the door behind him. He’s already dressed for the day whereas Takumi’s changed back into something more comfortable and convenient for the mattress. When Niles’s eye falls on Takumi, he smirks but doesn’t comment, even though it’s apparent to Takumi that Niles is having perverted thoughts about him and Leo. Great.

However, Niles just sits down the wrong way on Leo’s office chair, his chin resting on his folded arms, and swivels around to face Takumi. “We haven’t really taken the chance to talk yet.” This sounds like a good sign. Is it one? Takumi hopes so.

“No, we haven’t.”

“Have you just gotten up?”

Cutting right to the chase. “No. I actually ate breakfast with Leo but he wanted to go to school alone.”

“Oh?” Niles raises an eyebrow. “Did something happen on Monday?”

Getting up from his mattress, Takumi grabs his things. “No.” With that he leaves Leo’s room for the bathroom.

And Niles? Follows him. “I’m supposed to keep an eye on you!”

“Not like this, you don’t.” Takumi’s already in the bathroom and set his clothes on the toilet lid. Good thing he now knows it’s clean. Turning around, he’s ready to shut the door.

“I wouldn’t mind watching you change,” Niles draws, a huge grin plastered onto his face.

Takumi slams the door in his face. After locking it, he tries it twice to make sure it’s really locked. At least Niles has enough sense left in him not to laugh out loud.

* * *

Takumi’s more than glad to find out—after carefully poking his head out the crack of the door—that Niles didn’t linger in front of the bathroom. Takumi treks back to Leo’s room but before he can close the door behind him, Niles hollers from the kitchen, “I’m preparing breakfast!”

Takumi turns around and hurries to join Niles. Bacon is sizzling in a pan. “I’ve already eaten.”

“Are you into meat?” Niles asks as if he didn’t hear what Takumi’s just said.

Since he didn’t eat a lot with Leo, Takumi figures he can eat a little with Niles as well. But he’s sure there’s a hidden innuendo in Niles’s question he doesn’t get. “I eat meat, if that’s what you mean.”

“That’s good enough for me. Anyway, I had in mind the classic ‘wakey, wakey, egg and bakey’.”

“What does it entail?” Takumi sits down at the kitchen table.

“Egg, bacon, and toast. The most American breakfast I could come up with.” Niles grins. “But I insist you eat at least two pieces of fruit.” Takumi rolls his eyes when Niles turns back around to the pan. “If you want to, you can set the table.”

Takumi gets up and does as he’s bid.

“Oh, and do you want coffee?”

“No. Tea’s fine, though.”

Niles inclines his head, _purring_ for goodness’s sake. “You know where the tea’s hiding and how to operate the boiler?”

“Yeah. Odin introduced me to his ‘cauldron’.”

“Oh? That’s a high honor bestowed on you.”

Takumi snorts and helps himself. “You sound like Odin.”

“Mhm. Always learning from the best.” Niles makes himself a coffee.“Speaking of the devil: Black like Odin’s soul,” he says, grinning. Takumi gives him a funny look Niles laughs heartily at.

Niles’s idea of breakfast tastes agreeable although it’s a little much on the fatty side. The two apples Takumi eats on the side help lighten the food overall, though.

“I’ll make sure you won’t feel lonely what with Leo’s continued absence,” Niles says over his cup of coffee. “It’s already the second day and you can’t be his shadow, after all.”

Takumi chokes on his toast and coughs at Niles’s choice of words.

“Well, we’ll have to work on that. I’ll show you how not to choke and gag. Want me to deepthroat this banana here?”

Takumi doesn’t know what the hell’s that supposed to mean, and he doesn’t want to know. Shaking his head no, he knows he has to change the subject, and fast. Niles is already peeling the yellow thing that’s probably a banana and… oh no. Face red, Takumi asks as fast as he can without stumbling over the words, “How did you, Leo and Odin get to know each other in the first place?” Takumi stuffs his face with more food. He can’t take Niles’s display any longer.

Thankfully, Niles comes to his senses. “Depending on the amount of detail you demand, it could be a long story.”

Takumi shrugs. “We have the whole day.”

Niles grins. “I like how you think.” He takes a generous bite off the banana that reemerged wholly from Niles’s throat—ewww. “Anyway, Leo took me under his wing after I tried to rob his family—”

“You _what_?”

Niles shrugs. “A man has to make a living somehow, and Leo’s family is stinking rich.” He finishes his banana before continuing. “Anyway, I tried to rob said family. Leo was still living with his siblings and dad back then. I wasn’t working alone, but was part of a gang of thieves, so to say. They abandoned me in the fucking mansion when our, ah, _activities_ were spotted. I was pretty much caught in the act.” Niles grins.

“Serves you right.”

“Stealing is bad, huh?”

“What kind of question is that?” Takumi shakes his head. He can’t believe Niles is serious!

Shrugging again, Niles says, “Well, I could’ve tried to run, but everyone in the household looked ready to kill me. I searched all their faces and Leo’s was the nicest one.” Niles raises a finger. “Don’t get me wrong, though! He was just the only one who didn’t look like he wanted me by the balls, he just looked mighty pissed.”

“Grouchy?”

“Yes, that! And exasperated. Like this happens all the time.” Niles grins again. “Like I was saying, I turned to Leo, held my hands high over my head, and told him to call the cops.”

 _Cops_?

“Instead of doing that, though, Leo asked me if I wanted to rat the others from my thief gang out and help with the family’s security systems. He said they’re obviously faulty if we could get in just like that, and I knew how to crack them.”

“And you accepted.”

“Yep. I mean, if that was a trap, there couldn’t be anything worse than prison waiting for me, could there? Well, maybe a trip to the hospital, come to think of it…” Niles’s grin widens. “At any rate, when Leo moved out, he asked me to stay with him even though I’d have to find a new job. As you can see, I stayed with him.”

Loyal, huh? And what a story… Takumi wouldn’t have expected Leo to take in someone with such a history, but maybe that’s the reason he’s provided Takumi with everything as well. “And your job?”

“I’m working for a professional security firm now, and as a bouncer on the side. No one expects me to kick their asses.” Niles’s grin is now all teeth. He looks like a shark. “I can partly work from home and do correspondence. I like that a lot. I can usually work whenever I feel like it.”

Takumi’s been steadily drinking his tea during Niles’s explanation and eating a piece of toast with egg and bacon, and both apples. He isn’t hungry anymore but there’s still something Niles left out. “What about Odin?”

“Oh, he is a whole other story. Literally.” Niles takes a generous sip of his coffee. Unlike Takumi, he’s barely eaten during his explanations, and it’s not his second breakfast today. Takumi doesn’t mind Niles wolfing down his food, and shakes his head when Niles asks, “Do you want seconds, too?”

“What do you mean, ‘literally’?”

Niles finishes his seconds cup of coffee and pours himself a third. “You had me there for a second. Uh, I mean that Odin just showed up one day on our doorstep. He has an ‘origin story’—his words—he’s coating in heroic deeds and big, biiig words, so you might be better off speaking with him directly.”

So Leo’s home really _is_ a home for lost men and vagabonds. “And you honestly think he’s going to tell me something he keeps secret from you?”

Niles shrugs. “Might be. But, thinking of this, Odin’s agenda might be similar to mine concerning my eye.” He grins, pointing to his eyepatch. “Every time someone asks, tell them a different story.”

After breakfast, as Niles is stacking their used tableware in the dishwasher, Takumi takes a deep breath. “I want to apologize.”

“Hm?” Niles turns his head in Takumi’s direction.

“For my earlier impression of you. I’ve heard a couple funny thing about you, like you’re sleeping around, and really, friends shouldn’t say these things so casually to virtual strangers, meaning me—”

“I’m fine with it. It’s no secret.”

“So it’s… true?” Red splotches start covering Takumi’s cheeks. He can _feel_ them blossom.

Shrugging, Niles says, “Yup.” He turns back to the dishwasher. “If you’re ever in need of advice or even sexual release, I’ll be there for you.”

“What?! No! No, no, no, that’s not necessary!” Takumi blanches now, wanting to take back what he’s said earlier. But he can’t chance the past, as much as he’d like to. If there was one super power—

“Your voice sounds sexy, y’know.” Niles finishes with the dishwasher, closes it, and turns it on. Turning towards Takumi, he reveals a wolfish smile. “I’d love to hear you groan and moan.”

That’s _it_! Takumi leaves the kitchen and locks himself in the bathroom. Niles can go and rot.

* * *

“Hey, Takumi,” Niles says, knocking on the bathroom door. So he’s located him.

“Go away. You’re creeping me out.”

“I wanted to ask you if you’d like to go the practice range with me. I’m rather skilled with a bow, if I might say so myself.” Practice range? For shooting with bows and arrows? Perhaps there is a way for Niles to redeem himself after all. “What do you say?”

“This is the best thing you’ve said so far.”

“Meaning…?”

“I’ll come with you.” Takumi gets up from his makeshit seat on the toilet lid and unlocks the door. Niles is waiting on the other side, his toothy grin replaced by a smile that looks harmless enough. “When can we go?”

“Once you’re ready! I _insist_ on giving you something a little more casual to wear.”

Takumi rolls his eyes. “You sure you mean ‘casual’?” And not ‘sexy’?

“Nope.” Niles’s eye twinkles. He leads Takumi into his room.

Which is way tidier than Takumi anticipated: The bed big enough for three people with ample space left for each of them nests against the wall, right underneath a big window. The bed comes with a big drawer underneath it where Niles stashes who-knows-what. Takumi doesn’t want to investigate ever, period. Niles’s phone lies in the middle of the still unmade bed.

There are two shelves, one filled to the brim with worn-looking books—he reads, and the stuff might even be interesting, so there is at least one redeeming quality Niles possesses—, the other with plastic cases and three bottles, two of them containing pills and one a clear liquid. Takumi isn’t sure how much he’s allowed to reveal of his _condition_ to Niles—or how much Niles already knows. He’s sharper than he pretends to be, that’s for sure. But not knowing what these bottles might contain is also not giving Takumi any clues. Is Niles suffering from some sort of illness? Is he a drug addict?

Shaking his head, eyes closed, Takumi tries to clear his head and refocus on his surroundings. A small wooden table with twi equally wooden chairs facing each other across the tabletop sits against another wall. A spiral-bound notepad with messy handwriting scrawled on top with differently colored pens lies atop the table.

And on the opposite wall from the table lies Niles’s walk-in closet with a big mirror as high as the wall adorning it. Niles opens the sliding door and flicks a switch for the light inside it while Takumi’s attention is drawn to something else entirely: Niles’s extensive collection of pin-ups and nudes covering the walls. How could he not have noticed before? And was the mag…? At least nothing looks sticky or smells funny, from what Takumi can tell.

Niles pokes his head out of the walk-in closet, Takumi notices in his peripheral vision. Walking over to Takumi, standing there with his mouth hanging open, Niles says, “Couldn’t help but notice you admiring my posters.”

Takumi spins around, face darkening to a deep shade of red. “This isn’t normal! This is… perverted, and you take pleasure in these acts!” Jerking off to naked men, no less, if the mag was any indication. “You know what? I’m renouncing my apology from earlier. You’re one thing, and that is damn naughty!”

“Aw, I like being called ‘naughty’,” Niles freaking _purrs_. Takumi is _this_ close to punching him in the face when Niles says, “Come, there are some things I’d like you to look at.”

“Not more of,” Takumi opens his arms, “these posters.”

“None of them are in there, promised. Just clothes.”

Sighing, Takumi relents. Contrary to his expectation, there aren’t any pin-ups on the inside of the closet as well. It’s actually rather neat, same as Niles’s room. And Niles has neither his underwear nor lingerie on display. Instead, his closet is filled with an abundance of comfy looking sweaters and sweatpants, hoodies and jeans, t-shirts with either pictures or text printed on them, dozens upon dozens of socks with outlandish prints—like depicting Nohrian fast food—, and a single pair of shorts.

Niles follows Takumi’s line of sight. “Ah, the shorts. I don’t particularly like them—I’d have to shave my legs so they don’t look weird. My hair color clashes terribly with my skin’s down there. I keep the shorts only for their sentimental value, really.”

Takumi glances in Niles’s direction. “Why is your hair white anyway?”

“Turned white from the shock of alien contact.”

“Pardon me?” This doesn’t make sense, does it…?

“Green people from outer space. The ones who took my eye, remember?” Takumi stares as a sly grin forms on Niles’s face.

Takumi gets over it soon enough because Niles more or less bombards him with fashion advice.

“You should try things with your hair instead of tying it up the same way every day,” Niles eventually says. “Gets boring awfully fast, being tied up the same way all the time like this. I speak from experience.”

Rolling his eyes, Takumi does the only thing that has born any fruit so far when dealing with Niles: changing the topic. “I want to go to the bow range already and not be stuck in your closet all day.”

Shrugging, Niles says, “Fine, fine. You’re free to pick a couple of clothes.” Instead of giving Takumi a choice in the matter, Niles hands him stacks of clothes.

“Are you sure you want me to have all that?” Takumi’s arms are already full and Niles is still adding to the pile.

“I don’t wear these anymore. They’re just taking up space.” Niles shrugs. “You should also totally change into them.”

“Now?”

“Yeah! We have to see if these fit.”

Unlikely, seeing as Takumi is seemingly shorter than everyone else in this world. Raising his chin to be able to look at Niles over the heap of clothes in his arms, Takumi arches an eyebrow. “I’ll do it in the bathroom.” He will _not_ give Niles he satisfaction and strip in front of him. Turning on his heel, Takumi makes his way to the bathroom. He has to tread slowly since the clothes in his arms block most of his field of vision.

“Let me get this _straight_ , Takumi,” Niles says when they exit his room. “You’re physically not in the closet anymore. What about figuratively?”

What?! Takumi will not get down to Niles’s level and grant him an answer to insinuating something like _this_. Takumi’s not a… a homosexual!

Winking—or blinking, you can’t tell with only one eye—Niles adds, “I’m just making sure. For Lord Leo, of course.”

Takumi spins around. He’s almost made it to the bathroom, but… “Why is this about Leo all of a sudden?”

Niles only grins, not saying a word. Takumi isn’t sure if any of what he’s just said was meant sincerely or if Niles is just messing with him and wants to rile him up a little more. Probing him. Testing his limits. Yep, sounds about right for him.

Before Niles can enter the bathroom as well, Takumi slams the door in his face and locks the door. He should always make sure to lock the doors when Niles is in the vicinity, no matter what. He’s the type of person who’d take a picture of Takumi having milk in his face and dubbing it something inappropriate.

Still, Takumi gets changed. Niles’s clothes fit hit better than expected, and they certainly suit him even though they fit rather loosely in the shoulders—nad he is broad-backed himself. Takumi hasn’t noticed if Niles has broad shoulders as well, but, well, if he is actually _good_ with a bow, then that would be a given. Oh, and Takumi has to roll up the sleeves a little bit. Trecking back to Niles’s room to make use of his full-length mirror (Niles thankfully hasn’t waited outside the bathroom door), Takumi frowns at his reflection.

“What’s with the long face?” Niles asks. “Your mouth is supposed to slant upwards.”

Instead, it draws into a thin line. “It looks like, you know.”

“‘You know’?”

“Like,” Takumi takes a deep breath, screwing his eyes shut, “you can see these are not my own clothes. They don’t fit. Why would I wear things that are obviously too big for me? Because, _you know_ , my fucking _boyfriend_ clothes me, that’s why!” Niles’s grin is all teeth. “You’re a fucking tease.” Takumi whirls around at him, sticking a finger at Niles’s face. Betcha _that_ ’s how he lost his first eye. “Fuck you.”

“We’ll have to work on your vocabulary although there’s definitely a basis we can work with.” Niles winks (or… blinks). “If you don’t want to have my old stuff, by all means, throw it out. Or give it to homeless peeps, do a good deed for me.”

“This would be different if you could just keep your dirty mouth shut.” Takumi turns away from Niles when he flashes him another grin, and massages his temples. Calm down. Don’t let Niles get to you. It’s what he wants. “What about the practice range? Can we finally go?”

“Sure. Just lemme get changed, too.”

Takumi shouldn’t have turned around to leave Niles’s room because, of fucking _course_ , Niles has already slipped out of his shirt and continues to strip nonchalantly. Their eyes meet, and Niles wiggles his eyebrows, then laughs as Takumi, face red from anger, dashes out of the room.

He doesn’t change out of Niles’s clothes, despite Niles’s behavior. They’re comfy, and Takumi doesn’t have much to choose from, anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter is set to go live on November 20!


	12. Chapter 11

When they are in the bus (thankfully not the subway) on the way to the practice range, Niles asks Takumi, “Where exactly do you come from?”

Only marginally avoiding to stop dead in his tracks at the question, Takumi finds himself torn. Should he make something up and risk the truth surface later and everything going to hell then because of his lie? Or should he more or less allude to the truth? Leo obviously trusts these people, and with his life no less in the world where Takumi comes from. How different is their relationship over here?

“How old are you again?” Niles asks, interrupting Takumi’s thoughts. “Did you run away from home? Leo _is_ rather benevolent. He’d take a street kid in—or people running with the wrong crowd.” Niles folds his hands behind his head. “Or did you just appear out of thin air like Odin?”

How is Takumi supposed to answer this satisfactorily? Worrying his lower lip, he tries to think of a response vague enough to count as the truth but not revealing too much.

“I’ll take the hint,” Niles says. “You don’t want to talk about it? I won’t make you.”

Takumi releases a breath he didn’t know he was holding. But he should offer Niles at least a little bit in return to his backstory. “I’ll be honest with you. I’ve been thinking about how much I can reveal about myself and frankly, I don’t know how much I can safely say.” Takumi swallows. This is harder than expected. “I have my reasons for distrusting not only you, but Odin and Leo—and his family—as well.”

“Oooh?”

Grinding his teeth, Takumi remembers that Leo isn’t the only one who’s in on his secret—Camilla knows, too. And perhaps Elise. And in turn, Takumi knows next to nothing about those two. He can’t tell at all whether they are safe to trust whereas Niles makes a nice enough impression (even though sometimes his pervy side takes over). And, hey, he doesn’t press him into this.

As they cross the final street to arrive at the practice range, Takumi decides to tell him. “I’m not from here, or from anywhere near. I suffer from memory loss so I don’t know how or why I ended up here, but I recognize Leo, Odin, Camilla, Elise, and you from my previous life. As my country’s adversaries.”

“So you’re saying you’re from another world?”

“…Yes.”

Takumi can’t read Niles’s expression and thereby gauge his reaction to this revelation. Niles eventually says, “You won’t like it if I say, ‘That’s a lot to swallow’, will you?”

“No.”

“Shame. Then I’ll go instead with, ‘That’s a lot for me to take in.’”

Takumi balls his right hand into a fist. Niles grins and takes the hint. For now. At least his reaction to the short version of the truth was better than any scenario having run through Takumi’s head. And Niles doesn’t linger on it. Instead, he gives Niles a short tour of the practice range.

“What do you know about archery?” he asks.

“I’m an archer in my home world.”

Niles whistles. Takumi pushes his hand in the sweater’s joined front pocket to fiddle around with his Fujin Yumi’s string, but he must have misplaced it when Niles made him change into his clothes. Shit. Takumi can only hope Leo won’t throw Takumi’s other clothes in the hamper and do to it whatever people do in this world to dirty clothes. He can’t lose it. He can’t.

Takumi returns to the world of the living when Niles repeatedly snaps his fingers in front of Takumi’s eyes. “S-sorry!” Takumi says, raising his hands a little to ward off Niles and taking a step back. “I just spaced out for a minute.”

“Uh-hum. I was asking if you know your bows?”

Takumi looks at the array kept in a locked closet inside the main, wooden building of the practice range and blinks. All these bows look funny to him. To a certain extent they comprise of metal or plastic as opposed to being carved wholly from wood.

“What’s your draw weight?” Niles asks as if Takumi has granted him an acceptable answer by staying silent.

Takumi takes one of the bows. “I have to get a feel for these first. They look different than the ones at home.”

Niles shrugs. “Fair enough.” He takes his bow of choice, puts a string in, grabs ten arrows and fastens his arm guard before heading out towards the practice targets.

Takumi strings the bow he grabbed as well. He misses his Fujin Yumi… Sighing, he takes another ten arrows (he’s been watching Niles) and an arm guard, and follows Niles outside. Thankfully, there are only two other people about, and they ignore Niles and Takumi in favor of their training. Their faces aren’t familiar to Takumi, anyway.

“Let’s make a bet.” Niles turns to Takumi with a huge grin. Takumi scowls at the sight. “If you hit bullseye more often than I do with ten shots, I’ll cook you dinner. Whenever you want me to. Once.”

Takumi remembers the stew Niles made when he first went with Leo and Camilla. It tasted fantastic. And Takumi wouldn’t lose. Not to a Nohrian. “I’m in.”

“That’s the spirit!” Niles’s grin widens. “You don’t even know what I’ll make you do if I hit bullseye more often than you.”

“And what would that be?”

“You’re in already. I’ll make sure to think up something real nice but not too taxing for a closet case such as you.”

“A _what_? I’m no closet case!”

“Sure, and I’m a circus elephant balancing on a striped beachball. Don’t worry. I’ll have you do something easy, like give me a massage.” Niles winks. Ugh. Uuugh. There’s no way Takumi will lose. No. Way. “So, do you want me to have the first shot or will you do the honors?”

“I’d like a couple practice shots first. I’m not used to this bow.”

Niles inclines his head. “Go ahead.”

After a round of five shots—overshooting his target with his first shot, not shooting far enough with the second and hitting with all subsequent ones—Takumi says, “I’m ready. You can go first.”

Niles grins like the Cheshire cat Takumi’s read about. He takes his stance, aims and shoots. Bullseye.

Takumi blinks. Did Niles just get lucky or is he _that_ good?

“Want me to home in all ten or do you want to take turns?”

“Turns,” Takumi says, taking a deep breath. He aims—no way is he gonna lose to a _Nohrian_ —and shoots true.

So they take turns. Niles misses his fourth, fifth, seventh and last shots, Takumi his second, fourth and eighth shots (although they don’t miss much—not hitting bullseye doesn’t exclude hitting the targets). Takumi wins.

Takumi wins!

Niles whistles. “I’m _impressed_. And owe you a dinner.” Which does nothing to displace Niles’s pleased grin. But it’s not like Takumi isn’t swept up in his own ecstasy from winning. “Just make sure to tell me a couple days in advance so I can make sure to have the night off from work and other adult activities.”

“I will.”

After retrieving the arrows, they continue shooting for the simple hell of it, no strings attached. “Where and how exactly did you learn to shoot like that?” Niles asks.

“Well, my home is at war. And because this has always been a possibility, every one in my family has had to pick up a weapon.”

“Are you a soldier?”

Takumi makes a grimace. “No. I’m a prince. At home, I wield a holy weapon. It’s a bow called ‘Fujin Yumi’. But it’s broken somehow—”

“You’re a prince?”

“Only the third-born. I have an older brother and an older sister. But I’m still part of the army.”

“And you fight with the whatchacalledit?”

“Fujin Yumi. Yes.”

“Did you ever kill someone with it?”

Takumi sighs. “Yes, but I’m not proud of this. And I used to hunt at home. So I’m good at hitting moving targets as well.”

Niles whistles. “This explains a lot.”

“Why did you pick up the bow?” Niles doesn’t have any reason to in a world such as this. It’s peaceful, and shooting seems to be something you do for fun and not because you have to learn how to wield a weapon.

Shrugging Niles says, “I learnt the craft so I could properly take revenge for my eye.” He taps his eye patch. “It was shot out with an arrow.”

Takumi rolls his eyes. “No, it wasn’t.”

“Okay, you got me there.” Niles grins and shrugs again. “To be honest, I just always thought bows and arrows—and crossbows—are way cooler than modern firearms. Oh, and they’re also neat because love arrows are a metaphor for penises!”

Takumi’s _this_ _close_ to facepalming. Why does he even bother?

* * *

“I have a question,” Takumi says on their way home from the practice range.

“Shoot.” Niles flashes him a toothy grin. “Pun intended.”

Takumi bites the inside of his cheek. “You’re blind in the right eye, right?”

“Mhm. Wanna see?” Niles’s fingers are already on his eyepatch. Who knows what lurks behind it?!

“No! It’s just something I noticed when—”

“You only noticed _now_ that I only have one eye?” Niles arches an eyebrow.

“No! Let me finish!”

“You know how depriving someone of their climax can be—”

“Shut the fuck up, Niles, and listen to me.”

“Yes, m’lord.”

Takumi rolls his eyes. They’re getting nowhere if this continues. “So if you’re blind in the right eye, shouldn’t you pull the string back with his left hand? Because your left eye is the dominant one.”

Niles just shrugs. “I’ve always done it this way, and I’m right-handed to boot. It only makes sense to pull the string with your dominant hand, doesn’t it?”

Well, Niles is not wrong, Takumi guesses and leaves it at that.

Of course, the bus ride back can’t possibly be spent in silence with Niles. As soon as they board and take seats, Niles asks, “By the way: What’s your type? Just out of interest. It’s okay if you don’t know or don’t have any.” He pats his chest. “I myself certainly don’t have any preferences whatsoever. I like everyone.” And he grins.

Takumi wants to roll his eyes but refrains. He should humor Niles. Maybe this only reeks of perversities but turns out to be an okay conversation for once. “I don’t know. I’ve never really given it much thought.”

“Well, if you want to try something out, I’ll always be available.” Niles jump-steps a step back. “I can also give relationship advice and pointers when it comes to intercourse.”

Takumi’s hand is shaking with the urge to punch, but he manages to nod stiffly and bite back his retort. And he feels torn anyway—how can Niles make actually nice offers while being a sexually motivated nuisance at the same time?

Only when they’re on the short trek home from the bus station does Takumi notice how much time must have passed: The shadows are becoming longer already, although the sun is still a few hours from setting. Taking a deep breath, a says, “Thank you. For taking me out to the practice range, that was fun. And for the clothes.”

Niles’s face forms a genuine grin now, eye sparkling in earnest. “Can I have a hug?” Before Takumi can even inhale to form a response, Niles adds, “I don’t want to come off as even more of a creep than I already do. I _know_ I’m freaking you out. I usually aim for the ‘respectful but teasing’ personality I present to my friends and my friends’ friends, but you’re just making it too easy for me. Teasing you is too much fun, and from what I can tell, you take this all rather well, all things considered.” Niles shrugs. “You said you aren’t from here.”

“Wait.” Takumi throws his hands up. “Are you flirting with me?”

Niles snorts, then fails to contain his laughter. “For a change, I am not at the moment.”

Takumi scowls. Niles is laughing at him. Asshole.

“Oh-ho, I see what you’re thinking. Okay, lemme explain: You never notice when someone’s really flirting with you,” Niles wiggles his eyebrows, “but when I’m asking for a hug, you think so?”

Takumi flips Niles off. “Don’t make fun of me! I’m not from here, to answer your earlier question, so maybe flirting is different where I come from.”

Niles snorts again but to his credit he doesn’t break out in laughter again. “I’m always flirting a little bit I think.”

“See! You were totally flirting with me!”

“My friends know I’m a tease and I love to rile people up, so combining the two is the natural conclusion.”

“I don’t give out hugs to people who make fun of me.”

“I’m not making fun of you.” Niles stops in his tracks and turns to Takumi, who’s also stopped walking. “I’m asking to be your friend, duh. No strings attached.”

Takumi blinks. He can feel a smile tugging at his lips, so he hides his mouth behind a hand to get that back in order. Perhaps he _can_ be friends with Niles, but only after getting to know him better. His one redeeming quality is that he likes archery. Oh, and books, apparently. And he gifted him all these clothes… Sighing, Takumi says, “I’m not too fond of hugs, you know?”

“I figured you’re a little like Leo in that regard.”

Takumi narrows his eyes. “What do you mean?”

“Oh, you two? Two peas in a pod.”

And he rolls them. “Yeah, it’s great he doesn’t bugger me with wanting hugs after filling my mind with sexually-loaded images I want to forget instead of imagine.”

Niles grins lopsidedly and thumps his chest. “That’s my job. So, hug?”

“Make it quick,” Takumi more seethes than says. If this is what he needs to do to ‘friendzone’ Niles (his words), he will gladly get over it.

Niles steps up to Takumi, pulls him towards his chest and claps him on the back. The whole procedure is over in less than a second, although to Takumi it felt like an eternity.

Never again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I almost forgot to update today! I'm very busy with the new Pokémon games (and school... always school...).
> 
> The next update is scheduled for December 4! Let's hope it won't be another close call.


	13. Chapter 12

Takumi doesn’t know how he pulled it off, but when he wakes up, he’s alone, and there’s a note on the inside of Leo’s door, informing him that Leo has already left for school and didn’t want to wake Takumi up. Oh. After grabbing a quick shower and an even quicker breakfast, Takumi also grabs two novels he hasn’t read yet from Leo’s shelf and leaves the flat. The sun is shining and he won’t waste the day inside if he can help it.

Only when he is outside does Takumi notice something that was extremely stupid of him: He doesn’t have a key. And he’s not Niles and can just… break in if he feels like it. So the doorbell will have to do. But is anyone home? Takumi didn’t run into anyone… Well, there has to be someone there when he gets back, or he’ll camp in front of the house.

What was also stupid of him was not taking Leo’s number with him, at the very least, but well… Leo’s smart. He can figure out on his own that Takumi’s just went out for a walk in this nice weather if two of his books are missing, right?

…Right…?

Walking around for what Takumi gauges to be a little over half an hour, he finds the park he’s slept in his first night in this world. It looks like a different place, both because of the sunlight painting everything in lush, vibrant colors, but also because of the knowledge that Takumi won’t have to sleep here ever again.

He seeks out a quiet place—a bench hidden away in a grove of trees and bushes—and starts reading. He’s so engrossed in the novels that he not only finishes both of them, he only ever moves to turn pages and swap books after a few hours. He only notices how much time must have passed because the shadows have moved quite a way since he started reading, and he’s hungry even though he didn’t exercise at all today. Tugging both novels, now finished, under his arm, Takumi tries and finds his way back to Leo’s flat.

* * *

Takumi rings the bell. Leo appears behind the house door in a heartbeat, and from what Takumi could hear, he more dashed than walked down the staircase.

“Takumi!” Leo looks like he doesn’t know how he is supposed to react to Takumi’s presence—anger and relief are both equally plain on his face. His hands and arms twitch, and he’s standing a little too close to Takumi. “Never ever vanish like this again. At least leave a note, dummy!”

With this, Leo takes a step back to let Takumi through. “I’m sorry,” Takumi says as he’s walking past Leo. Climbing the stairs together, he adds, “I only realized I don’t have a key when I was already outside.”

“And then you figured it won’t matter anyway?”

“Kinda? I mean, what’s the doorbell for?”

Leo clenches a hand. He’s left the door to the apartment open, so they can walk through without delay. “The problem is that you just disappeared. I didn’t know whether you’ve gone back to your home or something happened to you or—” Leo swallows. Takumi looks at him. Leo looks more distressed than he’d thought he would be. How is he supposed to alleviate this?

“I already said I’m sorry!”

“And you look the part.” Leo catches Takumi’s eye. “But, please, make sure someone knows where you are next time.”

For some reason, Takumi feels bad. A week ago, he wouldn’t have cared if he had made Leo worry, but today, it stings. “I will. Promised.” Leo flashes him a small smile.

From the entrance of the apartment where Takumi is taking his shoes off, he can already hear Odin’s muffled but no less excited gushing about his newest conquest. He follows the voice to the kitchen, where Odin is sitting with Niles at the table, a rectangle box with a picture of some computer thing printed on it, and gesticulating wildly. “It’s got 4 GB of LPDDR SDRAM, which admittedly blanches before its competition. However, this is still double the amount of the predecessor, and it’s the only console on the market to support Bluetooth 4.1.” Ah. Technobabble. If Niles’s expression is any indication, he’s tuned out Odin a while ago.

“Doesn’t it blanch before its competition in like all other regards?” Niles asks, surprising Takumi by actually taking part in the conversation. He rests his head on his chin.

“Does it matter when the competition only offers abominable trash to play?”

Niles arches an eyebrow. “Do they really or are you just so infatuated with—” Niles turns his head in the direction of Takumi and Leo. A lazy smile is forming on his lips. “Oh, hey, babes.”

“Hey,” Leo says.

Takumi’s mouth twitches. He’s not a babe. He hasn’t been for a long time. “Hello.”

“I wasn’t sure if you two were actually there,” Niles says over Odin’s enthusiastic greeting and taps his eyepatch. “Caught me on the blind side. Lucky me I have a gaydar. Or bifi.”

Odin is already snapping his fingers in front of Niles’s face. “Hey, I wasn’t finished!”

Niles turns back towards Odin. “By all means, go on.”

“So, how was your day?” Leo asks Takumi, leaning against the doorframe.

“Oh, it was nice. The weather’s actually good for a change, so I grabbed two of your books and went to the park to read them.”

“That’s quite a walk…” Leo frowns. “You could’ve gotten lost.”

Takumi rolls his eyes. “I haven’t. I’m not that bad with directions, and finding my way. And tracking. I hunt, remember?”

Leo nods. His eyes flicker towards the novels Takumi’s still holding. “Ah, Mary Renault. How do you like them?”

“Is this historical fiction or did the things she writes about actually happen?”

“Ah, there’s a historical basis for her story, but she added in a lot of the details. So there’s been guesswork involved on her part, and authors like to take true accounts and twist them a little bit to make something original out of it.”

Takumi doesn’t know if he’s only imagining it but Leo seems way more interested in the novels he already knows than in Odin’s new console. Or Leo just has this look where you think he likes to listen to you go on and on and on about whatever. Well, at any rate, Takumi’s mouth quirks upwards ever so slightly.

They keep talking for a bit when Leo says, “Oh, I almost forgot.” He enters the kitchen proper and takes two brown paper bags from the kitchen counter. “I brought take-out on my way home. English cuisine,” he adds at Takumi’s arched eyebrow.

The conversation at the kitchen table dies immediately. Takumi looks over, right into the distressed expressions on both Niles’s and Odin’s faces. “I’ll make sure all the proper funeral rites are seen to!” Odin says.

Meanwhile, Leo retrieves two plates from the kitchen shelf and places them on the table. “You shouldn’t suffer through this on your own,” he says, mouth drawn into a sour frown.

Niles and Odin share a look—they look pained.

“It can’t possibly be that bad,” Takumi says. He sits down at the table next to Leo and peels the paper bag. The food smells weird. But that doesn’t have to mean anything. Takumi digs in. It doesn’t take much for his mind to be changed.

Regardless, he finishes the meal—he hasn’t realized he’s been starving. And did Leo wait especially for him with eating dinner himself…? Glancing over at him, Takumi learns Leo’s picking at his food but not really eating. Oh.

“I can’t bear to watch this any longer,” Odin says, voice much more dramatic than his words. “Let me consult the confidential combination of characters.”

“What does that mean?” Takumi asks as Odin’s taking out his phone.

Niles grins lazily. “Pizza.”

“It’s a round, flat piece of dough topped with tomato and cheese. You can put veggies, meat, fish, even fruit on it,” Leo explains.

Takumi nods. He has a vague idea what this could mean. And he’s probably wrong in his assumption.

“If everyone’s in, why not order a big family-sized pizza with different toppings? One quarter to each of us,” Niles says.

With an enthusiastic “Yes!” Odin greets the poor person having just picked up his call. After five minutes of debating, they order said pizza and get some soft drinks for the Nohrians and ice cream for Takumi—he’s still suspicious of anything to drink but water and tea. If coffee is any indication as to what other Nohrian beverages taste like, Takumi wants nothing to do with them.

The evening is saved thanks to Odin’s idea and no one has to get his hands dirty. The only thing nagging at Takumi is that he can’t pay for his share of the order, having to rely on Leo once again.

* * *

He’s been found. He’s on the run, legs pumping so fast that everything is blurry as Takumi zips past, muscles aching in protest, heart hammering in his chest.

He wishes he hadn’t stayed alone in that grove so he’d have someone responsible for his misfortune. Someone to blame. Someone who’s ratted him out and now deserves nothing less but a horrible, agonizing death. A death that won’t come quickly, but one that drags on and on until you wish your stupid body would just let go.

Of course, this would only be the scenario bringing him the greatest amount of pleasure. The second greatest, however, would be to torture and kill the one who found him. So this is the plan for today.

Tracking is part of being a hunter, and even a Nohrian on a wyvern will have left marks, hints, proof of where they’ve gone. Takumi is quick and a good shot to boot, so sticking one of his bow’s magic arrows into the beast’s hide was easy. The thing’s dripped blood all over the place and probably crashed somewhere in the vicinity, so finding it should be child’s play.

There are other advantages to his prey’s blood loss: Apart from the wyvern becoming weak and easy to fight off, blood can not only be followed by mere sight. No, its smell was unmistakable, even when mingled with the other scents of the forest.

When the smell of the wyvern blood mixed with that distinctive one of a human’s, Takumi’s mouth stretches into a wide grin. This is going to be a party.

It doesn’t take him long to skid to a sudden halt in front of the crashed wyvern. Someone—a human—is sniffling. Drawing his bow when he is still slowing his run into a halt, he takes aim and severs the beast’s wings.

The wyvern lets out an ear-piercing scream, followed by a yowl from the human. “Who’s there?” a male voice demands. Takumi follows the voice. A young man is sitting in the dirt and cradling the wyverns head. His head turns in Takumi’s direction. “Who’s there?” he demands again.

“The end.” It’s hard to speak, to put thoughts into words. To translate your feelings into language to make other people understand. “Death.”

“What?” The man’s eyebrows draw together. “You’re that lost prince from Hoshido.”

Takumi snorts. He aims higher than just being relegated as a prince. The third-born in the royal family, at that, and only coming in at fifth place if you count the traitors Azura and Corrin. And isn’t this ridiculous—isn’t this worth a laugh?

The man stares wordlessly at him, eyebrows drawn down into a frown. He lets Takumi laugh for another minute before saying, “Stop it. What are you doing here?”

Takumi points at the man. “This is… Hoshido. _You_ do not… belong here!”

“Let me grieve in piece.” He narrows his eyes at Takumi. “Hoshido’s about to lose the war anyway. I can stay here as long as I want to.”

Takumi grins. The young man doesn’t seem aware of his impending doom. “You do not… belong here.” Takumi draws back his bow’s string, a black and purple arrow materializing in his hand. He lets go. “Die!”

The man lets out a scream as his thigh is pierced by the arrow. It vanishes, leaving the blood to spill out freely from the wound. Trying to stand up in vain, the man falls to his hands and knees. “What’s wrong with you?!”

“You’re the enemy.” Takumi’s thoughts and feelings are too complex to put into words. There’s so much more he wants to say, so much more he wants to _do_ , but his gut is guiding him, stomach rumbling, mouth watering. Forget about torture. “I have to… kill… Hoshido’s enemies.”

Takumi lets another arrow fly, this time hitting the man’s abdomen. He holds his tummy in a futile attempt to quench the flow of blood. It’s seeping through his hands and painting the forest floor a tantalizing red. The man coughs, and blood even comes out of his mouth. Interesting. Good.

The next arrow grazes in the man’s cheek. He looks up, eyes wild and afraid. Takumi sees reflected what’s going through the man’s head— _death_. And it comes swiftly. Another arrow pierces the man’s throat, sticking out of the back of his neck before disappearing. The man’s mouth opens and closes, and he can’t even manage a wail anymore. Perhaps his vocal cords have been ruptured by the arrow, or the blood is clotting up his windpipe. At any rate, it takes him almost a comically long time to slump over from weakness.

Takumi licks his lips again. The wyvern lets out an ear-piercing scream. Ah, he forgot something. Putting the stupid beast out of its misery, Takumi lets another arrow materialize in his hand to hack away at the bodies. They will nourish him for a few days, until the meat goes bad. But he has to be on the move anyway. Who knows who the young Nohrian informs by simply missing, if not having informed others by other means beforehand?

* * *

Takumi lies awake in his makeshift bed. It’s dark all around him but he can still see gray shapes on the ceiling, in the air, right in front of his face. He turns around and squeezes his eyes shut, colors dancing before the blackness in his eyelids. Takumi’s heart is beating so fast from the shock of the nightmare that he can’t possibly go to sleep again this night.

And he’s dreaded this—he’s gone too long without the explicit nightmares—and stayed awake as long as he dared, but eventually exhaustion got the better of him. It won’t again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for over 1000 views!!!  
> Next update: Dec 18!


	14. Chapter 13

Takumi doesn’t know how he managed it, but eventually he did fall asleep in spite of his nightmare. He blames his terrible sleep on him having slept through Leo’s alarm and him going _again_. Leo’s left a note again, in the precise spot from the day before, saying he went alone and that he texted Odin—Niles having slipped out the door before him to “run some errands”.

Takumi leaves the room and checks on Odin by knocking on his door. No response. Well. Takumi takes a shower, eats breakfast, and tries Odin’s door again. No response. Again. Great. This is promising to be… great.

Well, Takumi figures, he can sort through his stuff, perhaps find a clue… He checks all pockets and pouches he can find on every article of clothing he’s worn when he woke up in this world.

He finds the bowstring of the Fujin Yumi, giving off the faint, light-blue glow he’s used to.

There’s also the simple brown wallet, made out of artificial leather. Inside are stored his ID, ATM and health care cards. That’s it. Oh, and the pictures of him on these cards are… ugly. Does he really look that bad? Takumi checks his appearance in the mirror in Leo’s room. No, he looks fine. These pictures are just lying.

He also procures something from the deepest recesses of his pants’ folds which Takumi guesses to be a wrapper for some sort of candy, thoroughly washed out and falling apart at the seems. This thing never belonged to him.

And that’s it. Takumi decides to throw the candy wrapper away—it’s definitely been longer in this world than him. The other things Takumi carries onto Leo’s desk. Leo can’t possibly miss them this way when he comes home, seeing as his desk is crucial for his no doubt immaculate school work.

Takumi checks again if Odin’s up yet but his door is still closed, there’s still no response when Takumi knocks, and he doesn’t want to wake Odin if he can help it. Niles doesn’t seem to be back, either.

Sighing, Takumi retreats back to Leo’s room, looks around, and grabs another tome from his shelves. He considers his options—plopping down on the mattress on the floor (bad), on Leo’s bed (probably off-limits and therefore bad) or on the sofa in the living room—and decides to make himself comfortable on the sofa. After doing just that, Takumi opens the considerable tome and starts reading.

The book proves to be interesting enough to suck Takumi in completely—it’s different from the reads from the day before, and different from anything he’s read in his world so far. Frankly put, Leo’s taste in stories is _fantastic_. The novel’s heavy on medieval warfare and politics, but seeing as this is something that’s been part of Takumi’s life, he’s intrigued. Did someone come up with all this, or is this chronicling something? He’ll have to interrogate Leo…

Turning page after page, devouring the book’s contents like a starving man being served a banquet, he doesn’t expect Odin at all. “What nefarious hieroglyphs are you deciphering this early in the day?”

Groaning, Takumi fumbles for some sort of bookmark and sticks an opened envelope already emptied of its former contents in the book. Seriously, it’s been three days and he can go clean the stupid flat all over again… “I took it from Leo’s shelf. You were still asleep and I needed to pass the time somehow.”

Odin crosses his arms and nods gravely at the explanation. “You appear to be a rogue.”

Takumi rolls his eyes. “I’ve always liked reading.”

“If that is so, I might be able to extricate a tome or two for you from my job.”

“Yeah? Where do you work?”

“At a bookstore.” Odin uncrosses his arms and spreads them wide, as if his work place should inspire Takumi to drop his jaw. Well, he doesn’t. Before Takumi gets the chance to thank Odin for his offer, however, Odin asks, “Have you broken your fast yet?”

“Yes.”

Holding his chest, Odin says, “I am at the brink of death. Starvation… what a ridiculous way to die in the first world in this time and age.”

“Then… help yourself.”

“I will.” Odin goes into the kitchen, Takumi trailing behind him, and makes himself breakfast and coffee.

“I’d rather have a tea,” Takumi says when he notices Odin is about to make a coffee for him as well.

“How could I forget? I’m sorry—I should have known better. I still recall the good old days, the two of us brewing some exquisite teas worthy of more attention than the fleeting one we could bestow on them.” Odin gets some ingredients out of his cabinet and preps Takumi a tea.

“Thanks.” Odin hums and nods in response, now preoccupied with his food. “Why did you only get up at,” Takumi leans over and checks the clock—it’s hard to read, but he still expects nothing but stupidity from Nohrian gadgets, “oh, half past twelve?”

Odin blushes. “My plan failed.”

“What plan?”

“I was playing an epic campaign,” Odin does the hand gesture from before again, “in an MMORPG, and tried to pull an all-nighter, but I fell asleep at around five in the morning.” He smiles sheepishly. Without missing a beat, he goes into full excitement mode. “I am now going to construct sandwiches.”

Whatever _that_ is supposed to be. Takumi hopes it doesn’t have anything to do with sand. Or, from what he’s seen so far from Odin, with witches. He doesn’t ask to appear a little smarter than he feels, and is relieved when it turns out that sandwiches are lettuce and veggies and a slice of ham squeezes in-between two slices of bread. They’re easy enough to make and customize according to one’s own tastes. Takumi follows Odin’s example and makes a small sandwich for himself because, frankly, they sound like a great option for a meal.

“What do you say?” Odin asks. “Have your taste buds experienced heaven?”

“I wouldn’t put it like that, but they taste good.” Perhaps Takumi’d change something about the bread, but so far, he’s happy with the result.

Odin grins. “The chaotic power residing inside me must have made such a fortunate occurence possible. I am glad the stars have aligned thus.”

And then Odin starts gushing about his new gaming console. Again. Takumi doesn’t get what Odin is talking about but it’s evident he’s excited about _something_ , and Takumi’s lips quirk upward ever so slightly.

“Your smile is something to be nourished so it can evolve!”

Takumi’s smile turns into a frown. “What?”

“I can’t bear it any longer—not informing you about a pressing issue I’ve noticed. You’re almost frowning as much as Leo. You’re even frowning right at this moment!”

“Yeah, maybe I am because I don’t want to be likened to Leo.” Takumi rolls his eyes for emphasis.

“Let me enchant you with my grand visions of your future!” Odin is doing the hand gesture _again_. “The two of us—the humble druid Odin Dark and the noble Takumi—are going to—”

Takumi clears his throat to shut Odin up. He’s talking _way_ too much. “What about this console thing you wanted to introduce me to?”

“Ah, yes, of course! I forget.” Odin flashes Takumi a sheepish smile. “Let us migrate to the living room.”

In there, Odin plops down on the sofa and pats the place to his left. Takumi takes the offered seat.

“This is the new love of my life.” Odin pats a black brick. Okay. He starts raving about this thing, Takumi not paying any attention because one, isn’t this the same speech from yesterday? And two, Takumi won’t understand much of it anyway. What he can gather, though, is that Odin really seems to be in som form of funny love with this piece of technology.

Takumi snaps out of his thoughts when Odin gets up and returns with miniature humanoids from his room. “I bestow the great honor on you, my friend, to grant these friends names.” Odin whips out _another_ midget plastic human. “To make it a little easier on you, I thought I’d show you what a good name is. This here is _The Ferocious Lord of Inferno_.”

Takumi nods stiffly. It’s probably better not to ask questions and just play along.

“I see your tongue chained in awe-struck silence! But fret not—you need not comment. My abilities have been granted to me by none other than a revered chaos deity.” Odin closes his eyes and nods gravely. Oookay. “Niles, however, has been cursed with mediocre taste in names. Behold!” Odin shows Takumi a small pink blob with tiny stubs for arms and big red shoes. “He named this little friend ‘BJ Extreme’.”

Takumi stares. Just stares. What the fuck is he supposed to say to this? He doesn’t even understand what this thing is, much less what Niles’s name means.

“Ah, I see don’t approve of this atrocious name, either.” Odin reaches out and pats Takumi’s shoulder.

Oh no. No no no. Takumi’s jaw locks—he _really_ doesn’t like to be touched without prior warning but on the other hand, he’s trying to get on with Odin here. And who knows where Takumi will have to stay the night if he doesn’t behave? This isn’t his home and he certainly doesn’t pay for any of the commodities.

He realizes he must have spaced out only when Odin gently shakes his shoulder—he hasn’t moved his hand—asking, “You all right?”

“I— Yes. I am.” Takumi takes a gentle step backwards and Odin removes his hand. Finally. “My mind just wandered off.”

“I don’t know whether to be concerned for your well-being or cheering because you might already be coming up with next-generation names for my newest figures!”

Odin doesn’t need to know what’s going through his head. Takumi chooses not to reply to him directly, but instead point at one of the figures Odin’s placed on the shelf next to them. The person the figure represents looks almost human but for long, pointy ears. It sports a green tunic with a long hat, and holds a pointy looking sword. “I name this one ‘Verdant Arbiter.”

Odin’s eyes sparkle. Takumi takes another small step back—Odin looks like he wants to propose to him on the spot. “I’m in love with this name.”

Takumi nods. Better not to comment and just go on. The first of the remaining two figures is a woman with long green hair, a halo and a long white dress, holding a staff. “This is ‘Principal Maelstrom’.”

“Perfect!” Odin’s voice cracks.

The second figure is a girl with orange hair, too much kohl around her eyes, a device that looks for shooting in her hands. On closer scrutiny, she looks… off for being a human. Frowning and racking his brain for the kind of Nohrian vocabulary that’s making Odin’s mouth water, Takumi says, “And this one is ‘Liege of the Execrable’.”

“These names do sound darker and more ominous than ‘Verdant Arbiter’, but that’s fine—I myself was granted my mysterious powers by an unpredictable being, a force neither good nor bad.” Stress on ‘good’. “Wait for me here.” Odin leaves the room and returns with a sheet of paper, a table drawn onto it. It’s filled with scribbles that barely pass as handwriting. Odin fills it out with the same unintelligible hand. “This is my list of names.”

“Ah.”

“Theoretically, you can name these,” Odin points at the figures with his pen, “on the console, too, but the feature was obviously made with people like Niles in mind. The long, good, and foremost creative names are reserved for the minds of the wicked and clever.”

Ouch. Did Odin just say Niles is stupid? “Uh, what do you mean, the feature is for people like Niles?”

“Oh, there’s a maximum character count. I don’t know when it clocks out—probably at twelve characters—but it’s way too soon. How is anyone supposed to satisfactorily name anything this way?”

“I see.” Well, it _would_ be bad if in real life only names up to a certain character count were allowed. The mere creative restrictions would be too much to bear for Odin, the way Takumi understands him.

“By the way, I _must_ introduce you to my Yu-Gi-Oh! card collection! You are going to positively _love_ the cards’ names!” Ehhh, they’ll see about that.

* * *

Odin makes himself comfortable on the sofa again once they’re set to actually start up the console Odin can’t shut up about (the figures apparently are peripherals for it, so technically, they have been talking about it non-stop). “Have you got any experience with other consoles?” he asks.

Takumi, sitting down next to him, makes it swift. “No.” He certainly doesn’t.

Odin takes the time to explain to Takumi in minute detail how everything works. Takumi keeps nodding throughout, although he’s pretty sure he understood only around ten percent of what Odin’s been trying to convey to him. Well, Takumi will manage somehow, he figures.

“Let’s start with this one,” Odin says, holding up a game and inserting it into the system. Takumi couldn’t catch more than a glimpse, but the game should speak for itself, anyway.

And wow, video games are _weird_. But so are so many of the Nohrian inventions Takumi’s mulled and marveled at, so their interactivity only comes as a slight surprise.

“Take the controller and just click on stuff.”

“Uh.” Takumi looks down at the thing. It has more than ten buttons. “How?”

“‘A’ stand for ‘assert’ and ‘B’ for ‘back’. The d-pad,” Odin leans over, way too close to Takumi, and taps the cross, “is for the four cardinal directions. That’s really all you need to know to navigate the menu.”

“Okay. Uh, thanks.” Takumi has to get out of the habit of looking down at the controller before looking up back at the screen and figuring out what the push of the button does in this situation. It’s hard, but he gets the drill eventually.

“Now, try out single player mode.”

“Don’t you want to play, too?”

Odin snorts. “You haven’t played yet, my friend. Behold!” And he’s back in his persona.

He lets Takumi get in a couple of races in the single player mode, teaching him how the controls work (more… buttons…). Experience. Good. But player versus player mode is unrelenting and Odin proceeds to obliterate Takumi. In which Odin even might have changed the settings to make everything harder for Takumi and give himself an additional edge. Takumi wouldn’t put it past him. And he can’t possibly be _this_ bad under normal circumstances!

Something’s off. Takumi clenches his teeth as he grips the controller tighter. He can’t take losing, not to a Nohrian, no matter what the competition is about or if Takumi’s actually _good_ at the sport. No. Every time he loses, he says, “One more time. One more.” And then, “I’ll win this time.”

“That’s the spirit!” Odin says every single time, not growing tired of this in the least.

And soon enough, he grows from failing to even breach Odin to overtaking him a couple of times to even winning in exhilarating neck-and-neck races.

Eventually, Odin grows tired of it though. “Let’s change games. Lady Luck should be smiling on _me_ , which isn’t to say I’m not glad you too are so enamored with my baby.”

Next up is a 2D platform fighter, in which Odin eases Takumi in much the same way before playing against him. And again, Takumi’s not giving up and ends up beating Odin from time to time as well (although not often enough for Takumi’s liking).

“Do you want to try co-op mode as well for a change?” Odin eventually asks.

Takumi hesitates. He’s still a little taciturn about teaming up with a virtual Nohrian… but Niles and Leo have proved to be at least on friend potential level, and Odin doesn’t seem too bad even though his way of expressing himself—both through big words and weird poses at the same time—makes Takumi uncomfortable. But… he’ll try to get over it. After giving Odin a piece of his mind at the end of the day. “All right.”

“At long last, a favorable answer!” Odin navigates through the menu and starts a match against computer players.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Go ahead!” Odin’s grinning. “I love questions.”

“Okay, uh, so what do you do apart from playing video games and with your pens and papers all day long?”

“Oh, I work on my first novel. It’s based on one of my campaigns.”

Takumi frowns. “Okay, cool.”

“Ah, and I also work in a bookstore, but I think I already let that slip.”

“Mhm.”

“Yes. It’s a regular five-days-of-the-week job, but I usually work on Saturdays so I have another day in the week off. And I usually take the later shifts. But my work schedule still varies a lot and I am regretfully rather forgetful of my worldly duties, so I have to rely on my phone to remind me when to get ready for work. And sometimes it even goes off in the middle of what feels like night! I’ve only slept for a few hours and then—” Odin mimics a siren.

Catching himself, Takumi almost jumps at the sudden noise and shuffles a little away from Odin. He doesn’t seem to notice.

“Oh, and I can get you everything new the book market has to offer for a discount.” Odin turns to Takumi and winks without pausing the game.

“Wow, okay. I’m… a little overwhelmed.” A smile tugs at Takumi’s lips. Odin’s offer sounds… extremely nice, earning him points in Takumi’s friend gauge.

“Don’t worry about it!” Odin gives Takumi a thumbs-up. “Anyway, I also go to drama practice once a week. It’s something I only do on the side, and my chances of ever becoming a professional with the little amount of time I pour into it are slim at best. So I try to see it from the positive side. It’s fun, and I learn so much!”

Takumi nods. “Is this why you’re sometimes so… overdramatic?”

“Ah, so you’ve noticed my persona.”

“…Yes.” How can you not notice it?!

“I’ve always been this way.”

“Ah. So you haven’t come up with this recently.”

“No.”

“What did Leo say to it when you got to know each other?”

Odin visibly reacts to this question, freezing up a bit, his performance in the videogame deteriorating. It can’t be that bad, can it be? Odin recovers, though, nodding to himself. “He took it well. After all, he offered me a place in his merry band of vagabonds.”

“How did you meet, anyway?”

Odin stays silent for while, crossings his arms and putting on a show of thinking. If he’s really serious about acting, he’s either no good at it or he isn’t in front of Takumi. Odin uncrosses his arms before spouting a monologue narrated like Takumi’s seen it done in the movie. “I am a swordsman, mercenary by trade. After traveling to the past, I fought alongside my parents—who haven’t even conceived me at that point, much less thought about the exciting ways in which a child could enrich their budding marriage—to save my home land from a plague I and my comrades failed to rid it of in the present. But, alas! In our urgency, we—the fighters from my parent’s future—had forgotten a tiny detail: We had no way of getting back to our time. Which, thinking about it, is actually for the better, seeing as it must have become a wasteland ruled by the Fell Dragon after our departure.”

A dragon?

“In my parent’s time, there was nothing left for me to do,” Odin continues. “Peace had been restored and I was out of a job. I couldn’t very well stay with my parents because in the meantime, they’ve gotten busy, celebrating the end of a war and all that, and my mother was pregnant with me! So I was looking for a place to live, Leo was looking for an additional roommate, and that’s how it went.”

“That’s it?”

“Yep. Pretty exciting, isn’t it?”

“The ending was rather anti-climatic.” Meaning terrible. Odin’s story sounds fishy as fuck, and it doesn’t serve to answer Takumi’s question. Especially the beginning is so over-the-top that it reminds Takumi of his own arrival here.

“Ah, so you’re saying I should still work on it?”

“What?”

“My origin story.”

“Uh, yes.” This sounds like a misunderstanding. So try again. “When I was talking to Niles, he implied you popped out of nowhere.” Which strikes certain similarities to Takumi’s arrival in this world.

“I see…” Odin crosses his arms again, head propped to the side. “I’m suffering from memory loss so I made up an epic story to my past—every hero should have a fitting backstory, right?”

“Right,” Takumi replies through clenched teeth.

“What I _do_ remember is that I simply moved here from home. There were issues…” Odin shrugs. “So I packed my bags and went here to finds a place to stay and a job.”

“Just like that?” Takumi is incredulous. This can’t be it. No, this sounds just as fishy as the first story, but the overabundance of detail has been replaced by a lack of it!

Odin grins. “I know I’m blessed by none other than Lady Luck herself, so I knew everything would work out fine. So yes, just like that. And look where I am now: I’ve got a place, I’ve got a job, and most important of all, I’ve made friends already.”

Hm.

“How did you get acquainted with Leo?” Odin asks. “I heard you just popped out of nowhere as well! Might this be kinship?”

Takumi hesitates, bites his lower lip, bides for time, stalls. He can’t possibly tell Odin the truth.

“You don’t have to say anything,” Odin says, winking.

Phew. An odd sense of relief fills Takumi’s chest. He just _knows_ Odin will understand if he lies, and perhaps Odin didn’t tell him the truth either. Or at least not the whole truth. But then again Leo knows, Niles knows, and leaving Odin in the dark (huh, funny, Odin _Dark_ —Takumi snickers) wouldn’t be nice nor helping a budding friendship—or kinship—along either.

Taking a deep breath, he says, “I just woke up here, in this world. I’m not from here.”

“Are you implying you’re from an alien world?” Odin sounds incredulous, but not in a bad way. No, he’s leaning towards Takumi, making Takumi lean backwards in turn.

“From another world, yes.” When Odin takes a deep breath and Takumi can already see all the questions burning on his tongue, Takumi quickly adds, “I’m homesick and would rather not talk about it, if that’s all right.”

“Of course.”

And… having admitted his feelings out loud feels like a pang. Takumi’s chest hurts. He _is_ homesick. Maybe… he can cry in peace in the shower, later…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it for this year! Thank you so much for your continued support, for over 1k views and for almost 100 kudos! I wish you all a wonderful holiday season <3  
> The next update will be on January 1st!


	15. Chapter 14

Takumi and Odin resume playing games, having gotten side-tracked by their conversation. It’s back to racing games.

They’ve been playing for a while when Takumi, after suffering one loss too many for his pride, shouts at the screen. “ _How_ the fuck am I supposed to win this?! You keep getting all the good items but me? Whenever I’m _this_ close to first place, some stupid-ass shell hits me from behind!”

The door flies open. “What the fuck is going on in here to justify this level of noise?” Leo sticks his head through the opening. Shit. Fuck. He must be one pissed off son of a bitch today to resort to swearing. Or Takumi’s brain is just wired like this from all his fucking shouting. “I can’t do my school work this way. Oh, and by the way, Takumi,” Leo shoots Takumi a glare that would’ve been magically deadly in his world, “why did you have to litter my desk with your belongings?”

“I—”

“If you don’t remove your stuff ASAP, I’m going to toss it out the window right into the trash can outside.”

It’s easy to see that Leo’s grouchy, full stop. Hands shaking, head turning red from both anger and the damn embarrassment, Takumi gets up, walks past grouchypants Leo (he can hear Odin shout a “Sorry!”) and takes his two things from Leo’s desk.

Leo’s followed him. Thankfully, he’s not even pushed Takumi’s things to the side or even wiped the desk. Which is how Takumi totally would’ve acted on impulse in Leo’s stead…

“This is everything I own,” Takumi tries to reason with fake calm. He sounds fucking whiny.

“And it’s lying in the middle of everything _I_ own. Funny, right? Now, if you’d please remove your things we can resolve this issue.” Leo’s arms are crossed. His foot is tapping out an impatient rhythm his fingers are counterpointing against his arm.

“I don’t know where else to put it. And before you say anything, I put it there so you would see it.” Takumi’s hand moves up his arm at Leo’s thinly veiled look of exasperation, wanting to rub and scratch. “I thought maybe there’s something else in the wallet or the bowstring could give us some clues—”

“I neither have the time nor the mental capacity to care at all right now. We can look through your stuff later or preferably tomorrow, because I’ll be sitting here doing homework for at least the next two hours. I’m home late already.” Leo sighs, his foot having stopped tapping, his hands now rubbing his arms as well. “I’m stressed out. Please don’t make this any harder.”

Takumi’s anger has subsided somewhat at this point. Leo’s stayed reasonable but he could’ve told them a little nicer, couldn’t he have? Now Takumi looks like a moron in front of Odin… Why is it so hard to please everyone all the time?

Takumi takes his two things with a locked jaw and lets the wallet fall down on his mattress, only handling the Fujin Yumi’s string with care and smoothing it out before gently setting it down. He only now thinks they could maybe have a look over the clothes he arrived in in this world, as well, and they’re still out of commission. Takumi chances a glance back at Leo whose laptop’s already placed in the middle of two books and Leo’s notes. Leo himself is sitting at his desk, back turned to Takumi. Takumi leaves him to it.

* * *

“Does this happen often?” Takumi asks after having closed the door of the living room behind him. Odin’s since lowered the volume of the TV considerably—funny, Takumi hadn’t noticed how loud they were even without his outbursts before.

“From time to time,” Odin says. “Especially when Leo’s not satisfied with a grade.”

“This happens?” Takumi takes his seat next to Odin again.

“Seldom, but it does. Leo’s an overachiever and takes school waaay too seriously if you ask me—that’s why he only hangs out with us and his siblings, truth be told. But pssst,” Odin presses a finger to his lips and lowers his voice, “this is confidential. Don’t mention any of this in front of Leo.”

Takumi nods. “I won’t.” He’s whispering, too.

“Perhaps it’ll do Leo some good to have got to know you and make friends with you, too.” Takumi nods again. “If it’s any consolidation, Leo will come around soon enough.”

“Today?”

“Yes.”

They resume playing, and when the door opens again after a while, Takumi’s heart skips a beat, dreading Leo’s prissy, grouchy face again. It’s Niles, though, who sticks his head through the gap, much to Takumi’s relief. Grinning and holding several bags of take-out up for Takumi and Odin to see, Niles enters the room. “For my two favorite closet cases,” he announces with his cheshire grin. Niles closes the door behind him and meets Takumi’s glare with an even smugger grin. Then he sets the take-out bags on the table in front of the sofa and plops down next to Odin. Patting Odin’s thigh, Niles more purrs then says, “Well, technically you’re at least having the door open.”

“Niles,” Takumi says, “you’re making me uncomfortable.”

“Mhm. Is Leo having his time of the month?”

Odin pauses the game and shrugs. “Yeah.”

Takumi, meanwhile, eyes the take-out suspiciously. What if it’s English again? Niles laughs. “Don’t worry, I brought Chinese take-out.”

Is this what Takumi thinks it is? …It is. He can’t hide his smile when he’s handed a pair of chopsticks. This is starting to look better and better. “Thank you.”

“No biggie.”

While Takumi’s eagerly exploring the contents of the take-out bags, Niles asks Odin, “Have you two been playing all day?” Which triggers another over-the-top introduction to Odin’s new console, and probably the same one Niles has already been subject to the day before. Still, he lets Odin talk.

Takumi sits back and enjoys the fried rice with veggies and chicken. And eventually he sits back to watch Odin beat Niles at all kind of games.

Niles blames it on his eye, naturally. “I don’t have binocular depth perception. I’m too handicapped to be any good at video games.” Niles says this with a grin on his lips, so Takumi doubts he’s serious. And he’s extremely good at archery so Niles can somehow navigate _well_ despite the missing eye.

* * *

After at least another two hours of Odin and Niles playing, with Takumi eventually joining in and them passing the controllers to have the hands free for food, Leo finally enters the living room as well.

Niles perks up when the door opens and makes a show of pointing at the remaining bag of take-out. “I brought food! You’ll have to heat it up, though, if you want to eat it in a warm condition.”

“Thank you.” Leo walks in. His hair is still dripping from a recent shower. A towel on his shoulders keeps the water from making contact with his baggy, deep purple turtleneck, and he put on another pair of skin-tight black pants. Well, he can wear them, Takumi guesses. “Oh, and hello Niles.”

“‘Lo.”

“Takumi, Odin? I’m sorry for my earlier rudeness. I’m finished with my school work and have had a shower, so I’m content and free of stress—for now.”

Takumi didn’t expect this but this doesn’t mean he’s entirely pleased. He hopes he can still talk about his things and retrieve the clothes he wore on his first few days here with Leo later.

Sitting down next to Takumi, Leo reaches out for the untouched take-out bag. “Thanks again.”

“Always a pleasure,” Niles drawls.

Leo opens the bag and eats the food without heating it up.

“So now that everyone’s here,” Niles says, “is anyone interested in going to a drag party? I’ve got some free tickets for one hosted at the club I work for, and, personally, I’d love to go.”

“Instead of bouncing?” Odin asks.

“Yup.”

“Ohhh, I’m game!” Odin turns to Takumi. “I’ve been to one of these before and let me tell you, friend, I will never forget the grand event!”

Niles snorts. “You got so hammered I had to call a cab home for us. I’d be surprised if you remembered anything.”

“I remember the fun!”

Not knowing what this is all about, Takumi turns around and looks at Leo. He’s frowning. “I’m not sure this is something I would like. Too loud. Weird clothes.”

Niles shrugs. “Your loss. Takumi, you in or not?”

Takumi is torn. He’d go if everyone else went but if Leo stays… Inhaling, Takumi says, “I don’t know what to expect.”

“Basically, going in drag means crossdressing,” Niles starts his explanation.

At Takumi’s still confused expression, Odin says, “So for us men it’d mean wearing typical women’s clothes like dresses. And put on make-up.”

Niles nods. “Lots and lots of make-up. You’ll want to catch attention.”

“This doesn’t reassure me in the least,” Takumi says haltingly.

Niles grins, unfazed. “You could totally pull off an androgynous look with that long hair and these features of yours.”

What the fuck?! Takumi’s eyebrows draw down and his hands curl into fists. “My hair isn’t ‘girly’!”

Niles throws up his hands. “That’s not what I—”

“My brother’s hair is even longer, and my father’s reached the floor when it wasn’t tied up. It’s _not_ ‘girly’!” And shit, it _hurts_ , reminding himself of his family like this… If only he could see them one last time, give them a proper goodbye, and above all, tell them how much he loves them. Tears sting Takumi’s eyes and he turns towards Leo who’s preoccupied enough with his food to not notice Takumi wipe at his eyes.

“I tried to tell you: That’s not what I said, or what I was trying to imply.” Niles’s hands are still up in the air when Takumi turns back around to him.

“Then what?” Takumi challenges, one eyebrow arched.

“I just meant you could pull off walking in drag in many ways. Most guys can’t—they have one or two options without resorting to wigs and other extras, although they’re part of the show, too. But doing it with your natural hair?” Niles licks his lips in a way Takumi doesn’t like. “And you’re not supposed to blend in—the whole point of drag is to stand out! But your looks could give you an edge, a flavor so to speak, that’s hard to achieve. You’ll turn heads.” The cheshire grin is back.

Takumi still hesitastes, although this all sounds worse by the second. A glance to Leo reveals him still to be engrossed in his food, watching the tech demos of the console playing on the TV (or… staring into space and coincidentally fixating on the screen). The TV Takumi tuned and forgot all about.

“You could at least let your hair down once more,” Niles says, causing Takumi to turn back to him. “Do it for me, pretty please.”

“Oh, I want to see it, too!” Odin says. “I _need_ to know what you look like when your hair isn’t tied up.”

Takumi sighs. He’ll have to let it down before going to sleep anyway, so why not sooner rather than later today? “I’ll have to brush my hair out first,” he says, excusing himself to the bathroom and using the shorter route there by walking through Leo’s line of sight.

After locking himself in the bathroom, Takumi carefully loosens his har out of the tie, combs it out and makes sure it’s not electrically charged. He ventures back to the living room. Two and a half pair of eyes fixing on him (yes, Leo’s back in this world) make Takumi’s palms sweat and his heart pick up irrationally. All is silent.

That is, until Odin blurts out, “You’re an elf! You’re totally an elf!” A… a _what_? Takumi’s expression has got to look so confused that Odin feels the need to explain. “The term ‘elf’, plural ‘elves’, describes a humanoid race of magical creatures. They are known for their long hair, fair features, beardless faces, and magic. Their ears are pointy, which yours aren’t, but you aren’t as tall as elves are said to be, either.” Niles sniggers. Great. “However, let these facts not distract you from seeing the truth!” Odin goes own, shoving at Niles with one hand, the other held up with a finger pointing at the ceiling. “Elves are also known for their superb skills in archery—and aren’t you an archer?”

“So am I,” Niles says.

Takumi’s frown only deepens. “I haven’t the slightest clue what you’re talking about.” He strides back to his spot between Leo and Odin and lets Odin gush some more about his oh-so ‘beautific’ hair. Also, is Niles winking or blinking excessively? Takumi can’t tell and he’s almost had enough of this charade.

Thankfully (and interestingly) Leo chimes in. “Takumi, I have something I want to talk about with you in private.” He stands up and leaves the room, just like this.

Takumi follows with a quizical expression directed at Odin and Niles, shrugging and mouthing, “Don’t know.” Niles grins and Takumi is internally so glad to leave them to it.

* * *

Takumi closes the door to Leo’s room behind him. “Thank you for getting me out of… the situation.”

“If our roles were reversed, I’d be glad if someone took the initiative and helped me out this mess, too,” Leo says, resting a hand on his desk’s surface.

Takumi smiles. He’ll make sure to remember, because the only kind of repayment he’s able to make at the moment is to repay Leo in kind.

Leo opens one of his desk drawers, takes something out of it and beckons Takumi over with a hand gesture. “Take this.” He hands Takumi one of his old phones. “You turn it on here,” Leo pushes a button on the phone’s side, “but you’ll need to charge it first.”

“Leo, I can’t—”

“You can. I don’t need it anymore. You’re smart, you’ll get the hang of it.” Leo’s hand hovers uncertainly over Takumi’s shoulder, but he pulls it away and points at a socket on his wall. “Plug it in.”

Takumi does as he’s bid. “You sound like Niles.”

Leo snorts, chuckles. His cheeks look rosy. Oh god, he thinks Niles is a pervert, too. “Kinda, yes.”

Takumi mirrors Leo’s smile.

“Anyway, the most important reason I want you to have my old phone is so we can call each other if something comes up. I also bought a rechargeable phone card for you to make this all work—”

“This is going over my head.”

“—but you don’t have to understand anything before I showed you once.” Leo flashes another smile in Takumi’s direction. “I told you, you’ll pick it up in no time, so don’t worry. And I can tell you from experience that sometimes trial and error bears greater fruit than hearing an explanation.”

“This doesn’t reassure me.” Neither does Leo’s apparent 180 from his grouchiness.

“Even if something goes wrong—say, you call random numbers accidentally, and good luck managing this with a modern phone, the amount of money on the phone card is limited. It should still be sufficient for a couple of calls, and you can’t draw more money from it than is on it.”

“Which means…?”

“The call would just end. But you don’t have to call all the time. There’s a neat application of the phone that will let us text as long as you have an internet connection with a router.”

“You’re aware I only understood only, like, every third word right now, right?”

Leo shrugs. “It doesn’t matter. I know you’ll be a native with phones in no time.”

“And about… texting?”

“It’ll only work for you as long as you’re in the apartment, or very close to it. And you shouldn’t text so much with others anyway or you’ll possibly end up like Odin.” Leo winks.

Takumi grins. They’re getting back at Odin, and it’s good.

“I also have the phone’s manual somewhere. Give me a minute, I hadn’t the time to look for it before.” Indicating his bed with his head, Leo adds, “By all means, you can sit down if you’d like to.” Takumi sits down on the edge of Leo’s bed, watching Leo rummage some more through his desk drawer. “Ah, here it is.” Manual in hand, Leo sits down next to Takumi. “But really, you should just try things out and consult this only when you can’t find something.” And Leo hands the still charging phone over to Takumi. “Remember how it’s turned on?”

“Push this button here.” Takumi pushes it, only letting go once the screen lights up. “I still think I will mess up.”

“And I still think you won’t.” Leo clucks his tongue. “Look.” And he actually waits for Takumi to make eye contact. Leo’s eyes are darker than Takumi used to think. Huh. Has he never paid attention to this detail before? “There isn’t a lot you can do wrong. The worst thing that could happen would be you calling or texting someone by accident until there isn’t any money left on the phone card. But you’ll still be able to receive texts and calls.”

Takumi nods stiffly. He _will_ have to consult the manual. Several times. He just knows.

Leo notices, though, and takes his time to explain again. He goes through and over everything together with Takumi. Already having set up the phone card, Leo shows Takumi everything he can think of: how to unlock it, how to tell the phone’s charged even if it’s turned off, how to text someone, how to call someone (Leo doesn’t pick up so it won’t draw money from Takumi’s card), and most important of all, how to pick up. “Do you still have questions?” Leo asks once they’re finished.

“I’ll ask you if anything comes up.”

Leo smiles. “Good. Or you can ask Niles or Odin.” Takumi nods again, although Leo doesn’t see, already walking over to his coat and then rummaging through one of the inner pockets. Turning around, Leo holds up his hand. Something is dangling from his finger. “I want you to have this, too.”

“What’s this?” Takumi walks over to Leo. A pair of keys are hanging from a ring.

“The house’s and the apartment’s spare keys.” Which translates to way more freedom for Takumi—he isn’t confined to hanging out with whoever’s available this day. Leo’s eyes glint. “Yes. You’re free to come and leave whenever you want to,” he says, reading Takumi’s thoughts, “but please be aware that some of us have schedules to keep to.”

“Yes, of course.” Takumi doesn’t want to spend too much time outside during the night anyway.

“I regret I can’t afford a public transport ticket for you as well. It’d be—”

“I don’t like the subway anyway. It’s clunky and full of people.” Takumi rubs his arms. “I’m more the walk-somewhere type. And anyway, are you serious?”

“Yes, of course—”

“This is more than I could’ve asked for without feeling like I’m stepping out of my lane.” Takumi’s felt like a prisoner in this apartment (especially since he’s technically in enemy territory, and his little stint doesn’t help matters), and Leo makes sure he can explore the world now, albeit not as freely as he probably would like. Smiling all the while, overwhelmed by his gratitude, Takumi asks, “Is it okay to hug?” Leo’s mouth draws into a line. “Only shortly.” Leo still hesitates. “I don’t want this to be awkward, so it’s fine if you decline.”

“It’s… it’s all right. I’m usually just not a fan of physical contact.”

“Neither am I.” But the occasion calls for it, so they hug, albeit only for a second.

Leo looks as relieved as Takumi feels when he steps away from the embrace. “I think you wanted to tell me something having to do with your belongings,” he says.

Takumi’s eyes flicker to the small heap on his mattress. “I wanted to look for more clues. I’m still missing the clothes I wore on my first day, though.”

Leo holds up a finger. “I’ll go get them.” He leaves the room for a minute and returns with Takumi’s first set of clothes. They still need to be ironed but are otherwise clean.

Going through the pockets and feeling over the fabric yields no new clues whatsoever, however.

Bummed out, Takumi grabs a quick shower before he and Leo go to sleep. He’s sure Leo’s already asleep when he recalls he wanted to tell Odin his mannerisms freak him out the teeny-tiniest bit. But, alas, he’s already lying on his mattress and supposed to sleep. Whatever. Odin is actually is pretty cool guy. Even though Takumi doesn’t get the elf deal. He gets a nightmare instead.

* * *

Takumi wants to run, but to stay out of people’s perception, he has to tread carefully. Getting to Hoshido’s capital—and Castle Shirasagi—is a royal pain in the ass when you have to keep to the woods and the mountains instead of using the faster merchants’ routes. He has still two reasons to kill, and the pleasure of the hunt is sadly not one of them.

Firstly, if anyone sees him, they’ll have to die. Either they’ll recognize him and tell tales of the ‘missing prince’ if he doesn’t silence them, or they’ll take note of his soiled clothes, his messy hair, the blood, the stink. A grin forms at his lips at the thought.

Secondly, Takumi has to keep his body at peek performance. And you can’t do that going on an empty stomach.

At least death will still follow in his wake, and so will loathing and resentment. These thoughts are doing something to his body, something unexpected but it makes him feel all the more potent for it: His arousal is painful but feels oh-so good as he walks and the fabric of his pants keeps rubbing against it in the slightest ways.

The castle is still miles and miles away, so there is at least the one thing to look forward to. Release.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all had a good start into 2020!  
> The next chapter will go live on January 15.


	16. Chapter 15

“I’ve thought about Niles’s offer,” Leo says after having made eye contact with Takumi to see if he’s awake.

Physically he is. “Hm?” Mentally, he’s still trying to shake his nightmare.

“The drag party invitation.”

“Oh.”

“I think… I’d be willing to go if you came as well. Alone, I’d only feel weird there.”

“Why?”

Leo snorts. “Believe it or not, cross-dressing comes naturally to both Niles and Odin. I mean, I am kind of adept at make-up but I can’t make it work for myself, and I’d feel better about myself if there was someone else there who’s even less certain than I am about why he’s there and what he’s doing there.”

“I… feel similarly.” Niles and Odin might be his friends now… sort of… but Takumi still knows Leo the best and trusts him and his judgement the most out of the three of them. “So this boils down to either go both or stay both.”

“Exactly.”

“I’m undecided.” Takumi looks down into his lap, still covered by his blanket. At least _that problem_ is gone. “Maybe I should take the chance and go. Niles and Odin seemed so thrilled, so there has to bee something redeeming in it.”

“But?”

“I’m not too fond of too many people surrounding me at the same time.”

“I noticed.”

Takumi smiles grimly. “I don’t know. I also don’t want to say no to something I haven’t tried yet.”

Leo arches an eyebrow at the remark. He smoothes his expression after a moment. “Oh,” he says, “I haven’t mentioned it yet but I really like it when you have your hair down. You should do that more often.” He gets up from his bed, stretches, and leaves Takumi on his own.

Takumi blinks. So he didn’t imagine Leo staring and smiling more often last night…? Shit. He didn’t see Takumi cry, did he? Leo seemed so spaced out—no, he _was_ spaced out.

Following Leo after getting changed, Takumi finds him in the kitchen, preparing breakfast. He sits down at the table and waits for Leo to elaborate on his comment about Takumi’s hair, but he doesn’t. Instead he says, “I haven’t yet properly thanked you for cleaning the flat this week.”

“Don’t mention it.” It’s Takumi’s payment, after all.

Leo sets the table. “Did you find anything… gross?”

Well, definitely. “Nah, it was okay,” Takumi says, though. Mentioning the filthy items he’s thrown away probably won’t do him any good—either he’ll have to eat with that hanging in the room, or Leo will even get angry at him for throwing stuff away.

“I just mean, counting you, there are four men living here. I wouldn’t be surprised to run into someone else’s ideas of recreation in the living room.” Leo places two steaming mugs—coffee for himself, tea for Takumi—on the table before sitting down at it.

“Maybe.”

“Don’t want to talk about it?”

“No.”

“Fair enough.” And Leo hasn’t mentioned having seen Takumi cry, so apparently he really didn’t notice. Phew.

“Do you have anything planned for today?”

“Why, yes. I’ll have to do the groceries again. Odin and Niles can mostly sustain themselves, but I should do the groceries at least twice a week and it’s already Saturday. Do you want to join me?”

Takumi’s eyes flicker to the window. Leo probably won’t go to the Asia market again and the weather’s looking great, so what’s the point? “I’d rather spend my day reading.”

“Okay. I’ll take you to the library on my way to the supermarket, so you can explore a little.”

“Oh, thank you.” Takumi smiles.

“Mhm. I’ll call you on your new phone once I’m done with the groceries so we can meet up.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

“So a plan it is.”

* * *

Walking to the library on foot takes almost half an hour. But the weather’s fantastic and Takumi is in the mood for walking, so all is good.

Well, not quite. He’s aching for his bow, or any bow, really. Aching for practice. But he won’t be able to take the bus to the practice range now that he has a set of keys because he doesn’t have a ticket. What a shame! So walking will have to do to get _some_ sense into his neglected muscles.

Well, there’s another idea popping into his head. “Leo?”

“Yes?”

“Do you know any sports I can pick up here to keep in shape?”

Leo glances over to him, an eyebrow arched. “What about running? You’ll just need the right shows, and we can piece together an outfit for you.”

“I’ve never run as training at home. But maybe it’s something I can pick up if I stay here… indefinitely.”

Leo frowns. “Well, I’ll have to go now. I’ll call you once I’m done.”

“Yes.”

They part in front of the library doors. Takumi watches Leo walk down the street for a moment before entering the building.

The library is, simply put, _awesome_ : Books are everywhere. It smells like books. Everyone there loves books. Takumi can’t keep from smiling.

He’s admitted without a single brow raised, so he goes up to the shelves and browses them. There are books about everything he can think of, and even about things he can’t—well, except for Hoshidan books. But the place is still great. It’s a shame he doesn’t have a library card, and not the funds to get one. But it seems like he can still take a book and read it as long as he stays on the library grounds. So long as he doesn’t check out, he won’t need a card. Nice.

Still, the weather’s calling is stronger than the pull of the library, so Takumi leaves. He makes for the park, although he doesn’t venture as far into it as the last time. Settling down in the shade of some trees, only his feet basking in the sunlight, Takumi pops open a book. He hasn’t read for more than an hour when Leo calls him. Ugh, Takumi desperately needs a couple of bookmarks…

He hopes he’s picked up when he speaks into the phone. “Hello?”

“Hey, it’s Leo.”

“I figured. Who else would call me?” Takumi sits up straight on the bench.

“Touché. So, I’m done with the groceries and dropped them off home. Where are you?”

“In the park.”

“Hm… How about we meet at the park gate in 20 minutes?”

“If you can make it.”

Takumi can picture Leo raising an eyebrow. “I know my way around town. Do you?”

“I can see the gate from here, dumbass.”

“Good. See you in 20 minutes, then.” And with that, Leo hangs up.

Takumi rolls his eyes, puts his phone away and picks up his novel where he left off.

* * *

Leo’s already waiting for Takumi when he arrives at the park gate. It’s a weird feeling to walk up to someone waiting for you, especially when they’re watching you. What is Takumi supposed to do? Wave? Run over? Shout something? All these options would draw eyes. Or should he just ignore Leo? Whose eyes are boring into him…

By the time Takumi’s made up his mind, he’s already reached Leo. “Hey.”

“Hi,” Leo says back. “I have something else planned for today.”

“Oh, what?”

Leo smiles. “It’s supposed to be a surprise, so I can’t tell you. But we’ll have to take the subway.”

“This dims my excitement somewhat, you know.”

“I was afraid so.”

“I promise I’ll handle it better than I did on Monday.” Takumi’s not sure he can keep that promise. But Leo either doesn’t notice his uncertainty or he doesn’t care, as they walk to the nearest subway station.

Technically speaking, Takumi does handle the ride better than his previous ones—after all, he now knows from the get-go what he’s getting himself into. It’s still a flurry for him, and the people pass by in indistinct blurs, but latching onto Leo’s arm as if depending on him for his continued survival, Takumi makes it through the subway in one piece. As soon as they exit the station and can see the sun shine again, Takumi lets go, hiding his hands in the pocket of his hoodie and acting as nonchalantly as possible.

He hopes he can either hide his lingering distress from Leo, or it drowns in the way Takumi’s acted earlier, because he’s still not feeling all right. He could feel Leo’s biceps through the cloth of his sleeve, and for some reason, Takumi’s stomach churns at the thought.

“So where are we going?” Takumi asks. His voice isn’t shaking. Good.

“Like I said, it’s supposed to be a surprise.” With that, Leo leads the way (and Takumi even though he wants to storm off _somewhere_ , for no apparent reason). They pass a few lively streets before they reach a bus station. “Here. We’ll have to take the bus next.”

“That’s better than the subway.” Especially if it’s not crawling with people, too.

“You seem a little shaky.”

Hoo boy, Takumi is. His hands are getting sweaty with anticipation and dread—he has no idea where they’re going, and the way turns out to be long—so he wipes them on the inside of his hoodie’s pocket. But contrary to his apprehension, the bus is almost void of other people. Takumi sits down by a window and looks out. He likes this more. The bus is just a long car, and Takumi has gotten over his motion sickness. The subway, however, is underground and dark. Not his thing. And the masses of people down’t help either.

“Feeling better?” Leo asks from next to him.

Takumi turns to him, smiling. “Yep.”

They pass the bus ride in comfortable silence, Takumi watching the landscape pass by outside the window.

After exiting thebus at the proper station, it’s only a short walk to their destination. Takumi can smell the place before it comes into view: a riding stable. Takumi doesn’t even try to hide his grin as they walk towards it. This must be where Leo’s horse is. Why else would they be here? “You know,” Takumi says, “the Leo from my world actually rides a horse into battle.”

“Oh?” Leo raises and eyebrow, smiling.

“Yes! You’re a dark mage over there, and you battle on horseback.”

“Do I have a sword, too?”

Takumi shrugs. “I’ve never seen one. But your brother is a swordsman and I wouldn’t be surprised if you had lessons on the sword as well.”

“So I use ‘dark magic’ instead?”

“No, it’s different…”

“How so?”

Takumi worries his bottom lips as he thinks it over. “You wield a holy weapon as well. I don’t know its name or its exact properties, but it’s a holy magic tome that lets you control gravity.”

“This sounds rather interesting.”

“It’s nasty. I don’t know how many times I fell on my ass because you decided to flip me over.”

“This sounds rather playful. I thought we were battling for opposing sides?”

“Trust me, it _hurts_.” Takumi rubs his backside—phantom pain. “And yeah, our respective countries are at war. I never liked the version of you from my world. Which is why I acted hostile and confused when I first ran into you.”

“Sometimes you still seem to have problems separating me from the other Leo.”

“You know, I just wonder sometimes… if the Leo from my world is really so bad. Because you turned out to be all right, too.”

“Ouch.” Takumi shoves Leo in the shoulder, watching him stumble a few steps. “Hey!”

“I only shove my friends, dumb-dumb.” Takumi aims for a cheeky grin, and the annoyance in Leo’s eyes fades away.

“Anyway,” Leo says and clears his throat. “We’re here.” He points a thumb at one of the horses. It’s the black mare from the picture in Leo’s room, her ears perking in their direction as they enter the stable. “This is Brünhild.”

“Brinhilt?”

“No, Brünhild.”

“Bri—” Takumi stops at Leo’s superior smirk. So what if he can’t pronounce the name? Leo can’t speak Hoshidan _at all_. Stupid white man.

“Brünhild. I’ve been caring for her for about 15 years, so we’ve been through a lot together.” Leo strokes the mare’s nose. “Which makes her basically my best friend,” he jokes.

At least, Takumi thinks he is. Leo can’t be entirely serious with him. But… does he hang out with people apart from his siblings, his roomies and him…? Hm… There may be a grain of truth in that statement after all.

Not that Takumi’s much better in that regard.

“Do you have any experience with horses?” Leo asks, pulling Takumi out of his thoughts.

“Well, my older sister has a pegasus.”

Leo blinks. “Well, I knew they exist in your world, but I wasn’t aware your family even owns one.”

“I’m royalty. My family owns stuff.”

“I know. I just didn’t know pegasi are… tame beasts.”

“You can tame them, although they’re still very picky.” Takumi takes a step back at the loud way Leo’s horse exhales. “I heard that outside of Hoshido, pegasi only let women ride them.”

“That’s… sexist.”

Takumi shrugs. “Maybe men outside of Hoshido are too violent. I don’t know. I didn’t grow up sheltered exactly, but with Nohr’s continued aggressions I wasn’t able to travel abroad and see for myself.”

“I see.”

Takumi nods to himself. “Pegasi are rather timid.”

“But you still ride them into battle?” Leo asks.

“My sister does, yes. We also have kinshi—they’re birds big enough to carry a person.”

“And they’re both strong enough for that?”

“Yes!” Takumi scowls. “Or else I wouldn’t have said so!”

“Their wings must be gigantic to carry all the extra weight.” Leo tuens back to his horse, stroking her.

“Pegai are a little bit smaller than regular horses. And their wings are in proportion to their bodies. If they’re on the ground, they fold them, like a bird, and the wings end roughly at the pegasus’s behind. And kinshi have… bird anatomy.”

“Excuse me, but this all does sound rather… fantastical to me.”

Takumi snorts. “You can accept magic but not pegasi and kinshi?”

“You’re walking proof that magic exists and different words do, too.”

“Oh, I’m sorry I forgot to bring my pet pegasus with me!” Takumi throws up his hands. What does Leo _want_?

Leo turns back around at him, expression incredulous. “You have a pet pegasus?”

“No, I don’t! I’m not too fond of them. Or of kinshi. Or horses. I don’t know my way around them. It’s Hinoka’s thing. Well, pegasi are. Horses are only found on the Nohr side of the border.” Leo nods throughout Takumi’s rambling, but Takumi guesses he understands only half of what he says. “You have a horse, and so do Xander and Elise.”

“What about Camilla?” Leo asks as his horse leans forward to sniff at Leo. And then she takes a step forward in her box to sniff Takumi over, too. Takumi takes another small step backwards.

“She has a wyvern.”

Leo freezes. He actually stops moving in the process of opening Brünhild’s box. “What?” he croaks.

“A wyvern. A special type of dragon.”

“I… I know. I’m just overwhelmed with these revelations. Your world sounds… intriguing.”

A dull pain ebbs in Takumi’s chest. “It’s different from here all right.”

Leo’s horse neighs loudly.

Takumi’s not sure how he’s supposed to react. Horses don’t scare him, not that badly anyway, but they are _big_ and he doesn’t know how much trust he can put in such a creature just like this. He takes another measured step backwards, away from the box and Brünhild.

Leo doesn’t seem to notice, too preoccupied with the grooming of her coat. “Would you like to groom Brünhild, too?” he asks, turning around to look at Takumi. Leo doesn’t frown, so he really didn’t notice. Good.

“I don’t know how.”

“Did you never groom your sister’s pegasus?”

“No… I’m not good with pegasi, either.”

Chuckling, Leo says, “Watch and learn.” He shows Takumi how to brush the horse’s coat of fur with a curry comb, then hands it over to Takumi. “Now you.” Takumi copies Leo’s movements and, apparently satisfied with his performance, Leo moves on to clean Brünhild’s hooves. As he fits her with a bridle and saddle, he asks, “Do you want to ride her, too?”

Takumi stops grooming abruptly and blinks at Leo. “I can’t. I’ve never even sat on a horse before.”

“I’ll help you. I can steer Brünhild and make sure you won’t have to worry about a thing. Just sit on her and enjoy the moment.” Leo smiles, eyes sparkling. “It’s such an indescribable feeling, riding on your own! It’s so different from a bike or a car because a horse is a living, thinking being. There’s so much mutual trust and understanding at work.”

Leo’s obvious excitement makes it hard fro Takumi to resist. Does he even want to? He should try everything out before judging—he’s just told that Leo! “I’ll try it out, but by all means you can go first.” Takumi’s heart has been pounding against his ribcage for the better half of Leo’s little speech, and still keeps going. Takumi wipes his sweaty hands on his pants.

Leo smirks. “That’s fine with me.” He puts on riding gear before getting up into the saddle with ease. “Follow us. You can watch me make my round.”

So Takumi does just that. And he’s taken aback by how striking a rider with his horse can look—he’s only known it from the battlefield, but this is something else entirely. They are a team here, their relationship formed by care and trust and love. They do this because it’s fun and strengthens their already deep connection, not because Nohr feels the need to expand once again. Nohr’s horses are… broken in a way this one, Brünhild, isn’t, and it’s a sight to behold.

Takumi doesn’t know how long he’s been watching when eventually Leo completes his round and returns to Takumi. Who takes a step or two back because, no shit, horses are huge. He only reaches up to Brünhild’s shoulders and back. Of course, Takumi knew before horses are… bigger than humans, especially since he groomed this very horse that’s now standing in front of him just this day, but then Brünhild was in her box. And it’s been a while, hasn’t it? She looked much smaller viewed from afar.

“I hope you weren’t bored too badly,” Leo says and gets off the horse.

“It was actually kinda nice, watching you.”

Leo smiles, one hand absentmindedly stroking Brünhild’s neck. “Then I’d say it’s your turn to ride now.” At Takumi’s nod, Leo adds, “Come with me.”

He shows Takumi where he can get riding gear his size, meanwhile taking his helmet off, and helps him put it on. It feels weird to Takumi, especially the helmet. He’s never been fond of the things… his hair is going to look terrible. He has to open his hair tie to make it fit, and Leo’s eyes are trained on him in a way that starts to make Takumi uncomfortable. Does he look _that_ shitty with a helmet on?

What’s even more embarrassing is how Leo has to help Takumi into the saddle afterwards, too. And horses turn out to be broader than expected. Sitting like this makes Takumi feel somehow inappropriate, and he checks his pants but thankfully everything is intact.

When he looks back up, Takumi sees Leo look at him with one eyebrow raised, a smirk tugging at his already upturned lips. Grinding his teeth, Takumi says, “I won’t get any more ready than I am now. Let’s start already.”

As soon as the horse starts moving, Takumi realizes he needs something more than the reins to hold onto, so he leans forward to wrap his arms around Brünhild’s neck. At least that looks and feels sturdy… The horse whinnies and Takumi lets out a squeak.

And Leo? Just laughs impertinently. And says, “I advise you to at least crack one eye open a little, or else you’ll miss everything. If you want to be scared out of your wits like this—and pardon me, but it seems easy enough to accomplish—then we can always go to a theme park.”

“I don’t even want to know what kind of abhorrent torture device conglomeration that is.” Leo laughs. Fuck him. Takumi does as suggested (not advised, fuck that word, too), though, and opens his eyes. And looks up a little because the ground isn’t all that interesting, and the horse’s movements let it appear to be shaking on top.

It takes an eternity for them to complete the round—at least it feels like it, although Takumi suspects the actual time was closer to five minutes. After Leo has helped him off the horse again, Takumi’s legs are shaking so bad they’re close to giving out under him. He holds onto Leo’s shoulders to make sure he keeps standing. “I— I’m sorry,” he says as soon as his hands make contact with the fabric of Leo’s clothes. “I don’t know what’s going on.”

“It’s no big deal.” When Takumi lets go of Leo, Leo’s hands twitch as if he wants to reach out for him again. But Takumi keeps his balance. Whew. “Obviously, riding isn’t your thing.”

“I _told_ you!”

“But you haven’t tried it before so even though you were afraid of something like this happening, you did it. And I’m all the more grateful for this.”

“Why?” Takumi unsnaps the helmet and takes it off. He runs a hand through his hair to get it back in place.

Leo’s eyes flash and twinkle. “Because you tried to understand. And you pulled through, even though you were scared right from the start. So thank you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next update will be on February 5!


	17. Chapter 16

Back home, Takumi’s stomach has the decency to grumble loudly. His face grows hot and he wants to apologize, but Leo cuts him off as he’s still inhaling, saying, “I could do with something to eat, too.”

“Y-Yeah,” is what Takumi manages instead of his apology.

“Let’s scavenge the fridge. I’m too worn out to cook.”

They pilgrim to the kitchen. There is indeed a box of leftover pasta in there, no name attached to said box so hey—it’s free food. Leo nukes it and Takumi walks in a circle in the kitchen—he can’t bear the three and a half minutes Leo set on the microwave timer—then leaves and looks around the apartment.

Niles doesn’t appear to be home but Odin is ‘sitting’ (meaning: lying on the sofa in such a way he’s looking at the TV screen upside-down) in the living room, simultaneously playing a videogame and talking to… no one? “Hey,” Takumi says, approaching.

“Hi there!” Odin tries to wave but knocks his fist against the floor. Takumi walks towards him to look at the screen. Maybe he knows the game Odin’s playing. “Yeah, my patron’s new friend just came home.”

Takumi freezes and looks at Odin. His eyes aren’t focusing on him. “Why are you talking to yourself?”

“Wait a sec.” A moment later Odin’s eyes are back on Takumi. “Sorry, I’m playing co-op with someone online.” Odin taps a device on his ears. “Headset.”

“Oh, okay.” That actually explains a lot, if this is like a phone.

Takumi only has time enough to glance at the screen and not recognize the game when Leo comes over. “Don’t question Odin.” Takumi won’t. “Food’s ready. Come one.”

* * *

“Would you like to watch another movie?” Leo asks after dinner, putting their used dishes and cutlery into the dishwasher. “Odin is probably still blocking the big screen.”

“Lemme check.” Takumi holds his head out of the kitchen to see that, yes, Odin is still going at it. At least he’s not shouting about—maybe it was a heat of the moment thing. Or he only does that when he’s playing with people who are actually there. “Yes, he is.”

“Then we’ll have to make do with my laptop. The screen is a lot smaller but we can get all coz on the bed, draw the shades and have the screen be the only source of light.” Leo turns from the dishwasher to regard Takumi. “And that effect is rather hard to achieve in the living room.”

“Well, all right.” To be honest, Takumi isn’t too sure about the ‘bed’ part.

“Are you hesitating because you want to take a shower first, too?” Thank the heavens Leo is dense this one time.

“Yeah,” Takumi agrees, perhaps a bit too fast. Oh, well.

“Being with horses always makes you reek. It’s rather unfortunate.” Leo walks past Takumi to enter his room. He’s rifling through his clothes already when Takumi steps into the room, too. “Want to go first?”

“If that’s fine with you.” Takumi retrieves the outfit he sleeps in. He tries the brush—his hair is in tangles. Ugh.

“Sure.”

Takumi makes sure to be quick about it, and so is Leo right afterwards.

* * *

There are a couple of things Leo bid Takumi do while he grabs a shower. Following his orders, Takumi drags his blanket and pillow onto Leo’s bed, making sure to leave ample space between ‘his’ side and Leo’s. Then he draws the blinds on the window. It’s dark in the room now, but he can see just fine by the light streaming in from the door Takumi’s left open.

Leo’s shower is as quick as he’s promised it to be: After not even a full ten minutes, he’s back, towel on his shoulders. How anyone can get clean in so little time is a mystery to Takumi—and yes, he’s sniffed the air in Leo’s direction. The stink of horse is gone.

Leo walks past Takumi and starts up his laptop. “You can close the door and make yourself comfortable.”

“‘Kay.” The light from the laptop is enough to illuminate the room. Takumi can make out the shapes of everything, even as Leo carries the laptop onto his bed and settles down. Takumi gingerly crawls onto the mattress next to him. There’s thankfully more than enough space for two people next to each other with room to spare, just as Takumi’s gauged, and it’s Leo who’s caught lying between the wall and Takumi. Just as well.

Leo’s lying on his stomach and tapping something into the letter board. “Do you want to light the skull on the dresser?”

Hm. Takumi looks around himself. The screen only illuminates a fraction of the room, however, the skull is… discomforting, to say the least. But it’s only make-belief. Right. “Yes.”

“I have a lighter in the bottom drawer of my desk.”

Lighter? As in… light magic? “All right.”

“Do you know how to use it?”

“I don’t even know what it looks like.” Takumi’s foot bumps against his mattress on the floor and he loses his balance, only catching himself by chance.

“Let me show you,” Leo says and smacks right into Takumi’s back. Takumi goes sprawling, his fall thankfully caught by the mattress. “Sorry! Did I hurt you?”

Takumi gets up again. “Not really, but let’s maybe not repeat that.”

“I didn’t intend to.” Leo gingerly puts a hand on Takumi’s shoulder. “Stay.” And takes it back just as swiftly. Takumi tries to follow Leo’s movements in the dark with his eyes but the light from the laptop shuts off halfway through and Takumi’s body really seems to have aged because his eyesight has never been this terrible. Leo rummages through something, presumably having located his desk drawer, and suddenly, a small flame lights up Leo’s hand and face. Takumi’s heart skips a beat. “Here we go.” He crosses over to his dresser and lights two of the candle holder’s candles. Which are placed in its eyes. The effect is chilling, to say the least. Turning around to face Takumi he says, “I’ll show you how it works later.”

“Okay.”

“Can you find your way back to the bed by yourself?”

Takumi’s cheeks flare. “Yes!” He turns around and crawls back onto the bed’s mattress. The candles really do light up the room and help him see. And the laptop has a white light that periodically intensifies in brightness before dimming again, almost like a pulse. It’s… eerie.

“It’s nice for the ambience,” Leo says, climbing over Takumi without touching him.

“If you say so.” Ah, the bliss when you don’t know what someone _really_ means with their words!

Takumi finds out soon enough, though.

It turns out Leo’s idea of having a grand good time watching a movie is putting something on that will only feed and fuel Takumi’s already rampaging nightmares. Desperate to hold onto something— _anything_ —Takumi crushes his pillow in his arms. Even though he wants to leave this room, he’s too afraid to move, and too transfixed on what transpires on the screen, too immersed in the movie’s grotesqueness, to navigate to the door in the… well, not dark, but he better not think about the skull with flaming eyes grinning at him.

Takumi learns the hard way what a ‘jump scare’ is and why people call it that. What’s just as embarrassing (to him, anyway) is his general behavior: He can’t stop making all sorts of high.pitched noises, hiding his eyes behind his hands or burying his head in the bedding.

And Leo? There’s a low chuckle coming from his side almost all the time. He’s insane. He is. He even points out his favorite scenes to Takumi, and they’re gruesome at best. After the movie’s finished, Leo stops the credit roll and turns to Takumi, smirking, “Well? How did you like it?”

Takumi’s so through with it all that he’s almost screaming as he demands, “How can you watch this stuff for _fun_?” He can’t stop shaking and wipes at his face.

Leo’s superior smirk vanishes. “Hey, are you all right?” he asks, voice going soft.

“I’m… I’m upset.” Takumi forces himself to calm down. He can’t cry in front of Leo. Never.

“I apologize. This wasn’t my intention.” Leo’s mouth draws into a line and he rubs at his upper arms. “When I suggested watching a movie, I wanted us to have a good time. I didn’t realize it was so disturbing to you.” When Takumi remains silent, Leo bites his lip. “Takumi?”

Takumi takes a deep breath. This is going to suck. His eyes already dart all over the place instead of trying to hold Leo’s heavy gaze. “See, I admit I easily get scared. Your cars? Are scary. Your horse? Was scary at first. And these things on screen just now? I’ve _seen_ them all.” Takumi finally gives up and looks down to his lap in which he clenches and unclenches his fists. “I have nightmares all the time. This isn’t helping.”

“I mean it. I… I didn’t know and I’m sincerely sorry. I should have asked first, and I’ll make sure something like this won’t happen again. No more horror movies for you.” Leo hesitates before reaching out towards Takumi. His hand is hovering above Takumi’s shoulder. “Can I hug it a little better?”

“No.” Leo pulls his hand back. Takumi’s eyes dart back and forth between the hand and Leo’s face. He swallows a lump in his throat. Don’t cry, don’t cry, don’t cry…! “I lied. You can.”

Leo’s hand is back immediately and pulls Takumi by the shoulder towards his chest. Takumi wraps his arms around Leo, and feels Leo’s arms close around him in turn. He holds Takumi tightly, his scent engulfing him. Takumi’s very aware of Leo’s heartbeat. At least the distraction helps him to refrain from crying. “Do you want to talk about it?” Leo asks in a whisper.

“No,” Takumi says, almost managing not to rasp.

Leo doesn’t say anything, only tightens his hold for a second. When he finally lets go, Takumi makes for the bathroom to brush his teeth without a word. He needs a good night’s sleep.

* * *

_Suffer_ is the word ringing in Takumi’s head, again and again. _Suffer_ , _suffer_ , _suffer_ , _suffer_ … It’s a mantra, it’s a wish, and it’s only partly directed at himself. It’s a command meant for the other him, the one sleeping instead of taking action. Oh, and how he’ll _suffer_ for it.

His grasp over what he is really capable of is still fleeting, but he knows he makes progress. He’s getting used to this body and this body to him in turn. He’s shaping it to his will—although there’s only so much he can do, naturally. Especially with his lack of power.

There’s a good chance he’ll unlock some of it if he meets with his siblings. Last time, Castle Shirasagi was a blurry point on the horizon. Today, it’s looming in front of Takumi. He rubs his hands together, palms scraping against the insides of gloves gone hard through abuse of weather and blood. He flexes his fingers, causing the fabric to make a cracking sound but staying intact.

His memory isn’t as intact as he’d liked it to be for an enterprise such as this, but, closing his eyes, he can draw a pretty accurate map of the castle layouts in his head. There’s still a stretch of hunting grounds to cross—Takumi’s taken the long way around it as opposed to walking through town, for obvious reasons: Him being spotted and recognized again wouldn’t do if he wants this to be a surprise family reunion. And he can’t go around killing all the time, much as it pains him, to keep the citizens from spoiling the surprise.

The hunting grounds are not much more than a fenced-in forest in which all predatory animals (sans the odd bird) have been exterminated generations before Takumi’s birth. Only game lives and thrives in here, and Takumi knows the hunting grounds by heart, having shot at hares, deer and boar ever since he can remember, even with his memory gone spotty. Oh, and the trophies—it’s a shame he can’t take another antler or tusk with him. He can even imagine himself wearing a necklace with teeth, and not just animals’.

Ah, but he shouldn’t get carried away. He has something more important to do. And he has to get _in_ the hunting grounds first before he can infiltrate the castle proper.

This would be a hard task for anyone not familiar with the grounds, and for anyone without access to magic. Takumi certainly has the knowledge of the hunting grounds’ layout, and he might lack magical talent directly, but there are two ways he will use to propel himself over the fence:

One, the Fujin Yumi. No. _Skadi_. The bow may be corrupted, its inherent wind magic not intact, but that doesn’t mean all magical properties of the bow are lost. The arrows are still very much magic, and listen to Takumi’s thoughts and change their shape just as they used to. Thinking and making himself a pair of black-and-purple pickaxes is child’s play.

Two, Takumi’s new physical abilities. While they are still lacking, he’s faster and stronger than ever before, even though his body is running on way less food than is considered healthy. Well, animating a dead body _does_ have its perks.

Equipped with a magic pick in each hand, Takumi gauges the distance between the fence and himself. To make the leap, a hundred feet should be more than enough. Takumi counts his steps as he walks away from the fencing, turning around when he feels the hundred feet have been crossed. Yes, this is looking good. No, it’s looking _perfect_.

Running with his inhuman speed, Takumi crosses the distance back in no time. He takes a leap off the forest floor, almost running up a tree vertically, before ramming his makeshift picks in the bark. It gives like everything does under Skadi’s destructive magic, and almost a little too well—splinters form splits as Takumi climbs his way upwards in a half-circle around the tree, alternating the picks.

Eventually, the tree can’t take his weight anymore and tips over. Takumi’s on the other side of the fence now and arches backwards to look down. He’s about thirty feet up, even though the tree is leaning over. Hm. He should “survive” the fall. He has once already, and the High Wall of Suzanoh reached way higher than this tree.

So Takumi opens his fists, letting go of his picks and, turning in the air to land right-side up, he lands. The picks have disappeared on their own, Takumi’s body fuelling their magic. It makes this so much easier. The tree, though, swings back and forth before righting itself. It gives off cracking sound, and it won’t be too long before this specimen falls over for good. Maybe it’ll bury some unsuspecting person under it. Takumi snorts. What an amusing thought.

Now should the actually hard part come, but getting into Castle Shirasagi is easy. There’s a hidden trapdoor in the hunting grounds, used for emergencies such as game fighting back and trying to corner you. Being part of the royal family, Takumi of course knows where the trapdoor lies. It’s going to be a boring ten minutes walking over to it, but he shouldn’t attract more attention than he already risked by scaling a tree.

Takumi comes across a few animals on his way over, but he can detect no magic. What’s going on in the capital? Isn’t Hoshido under siege? If he were a magician, Takumi would’ve put magical protection everywhere. He can’t smell it, though. And magic stinks. Only his poor Skadi doesn’t, no. It’s perfect in every way. Or Takumi’s own stink accumulated over the days wandering across the country is covering his bow’s.

The trapdoor is overgrown with everything imaginable, even tree saplings, thanks to a layer of soil covering it. It’s gone rusty, Takumi finds after removing as much of the new layer as he had to—no point in leaving a mess for others to track him. He pries the door open as slowly as he can, the hinges screeching in protest, flakes of rust falling off and staining Takumi’s clothes. Well, they were bloody and smelling of metal already, so they don’t really get any worse.

Takumi climbs down a set of ladder bars set into the wall, descending into darkness. He pulls the trapdoor shut behind him, then reaches for his bow to summon a magic arrow. The faint purple light it gives off is enough for Takumi to navigate by, especially seeing as the way winding into the castle cellars is straight-forwards, with no paths branching off from the main one.

A little wetness tickles Takumi’s feet through his boots, and the damp smell in here combined with the lack of breathable air is way worse than the low ceiling and the relative dark. Takumi walks towards the castle, never faltering in his step. It’s a long walk, but after half an hour, Takumi reaches the far wall. There’s another set of metal bars set into the wall. Opening the hatch from the inside is harder, but if you have the option of one-handedly hacking away at the rusting hinges with a magic arrow, it’s only a nuisance, not a problem.

As expected, there’s no one in the castle cellar. And who should be? With loss after loss, the Hoshidan army doesn’t take prisoners—the meager spaces behind iron bars are all unoccupied. They wouldn’t be able to keep them fed, anyway.

Sadly, Takumi can’t waltz into the main building, so he has to use the servants’ corridors to get around. They’re almost just as bad an option, though, mainly because servants might be using them. There’s usually less activity during the nights, so Takumi settles down in the back of the cellars, prying open a sake barrel with a knife-shaped arrow and drinking to his heart’s content.

He doesn’t fall asleep.

Only when the light has faded completely, the only illumination in the room coming from Takumi’s arrow-turned-blade, does he get up, cross the room and slide open the door. He waits in the frame until the candles on the higher floors have been snuffed out.

His steps are inaudible to the human ear, even though his boots are covered in stains, the leather having gone hard and corrosive. But Takumi is so much more now than he used to be.

The faint glow of Skadi’s arrows are guiding him along until Takumi rounds another corner a few flights of stairs up. Light spills through the paper walls. Takumi drops into a crouch and waits, but disappointment hits him when he makes out two voices murmuring.

Then his heart picks up, a grin stretching his face into a grimace. He knows these voices. It’s his two only friends. Oboro and Hinata.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter is scheduled for February 19!!


	18. Chapter 17

“We should get back to business,” Leo says over breakfast.

Takumi looks up from his plate, having smeared more and more butter on his bread to pass the time. He’s not hungry. Not after almost having seen his friends again, even if his nightmares twist everything and make him do horrible things. It’s pouring outside the window behind Leo, and the dark clouds and sorry weather aren’t helping him cheer up in the least. “Hm?”

“We neglected looking for a way home for you the past few days because of me having to go to school, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t been thinking about how we can pick up the thread again.” Leo’s plate is already empty. He’s such a neat freak he even clears his crumbs.

“Yeah? About what?”

“What are your friends’ and family’s names? Perhaps we can find them—or this world’s versions of them—somewhere in the vicinity. If their names are as odd as yours is to me, it should be easy enough to trace them by their names.”

Takumi gulps. This is coming a little to close to his earlier thoughts… And while he’d kill to see the people he cares most about again, and preferably soon, he doesn’t want to end up disappointed by another failure. Disappointed either because they don’t find anyone, or because the people they do find don’t recognize him.

His feelings must be evident on his face. Pouring himself another serving of coffee, Leo says, “Don’t worry so much. We can’t make your situation any worse by looking into this, can we?”

Leo doesn’t get it. He doesn’t understand the dread Takumi finds himself confronted with. Despite his nagging feelings, Takumi says, “Yeah, you’re right.” While this only helps to make this dread and apprehension even worse, it hopefully brings about a change. It’s already spread through his body, tingling in his fingertips, and there’s nothing he can do to alleviate it but satisfy his curiosity.

“The easiest method by far to find out if anyone lives near here would probably be consulting a telephone directory.” Leo empties his cup.

Takumi has still to touch his food beyond piling butter on his slice of bread. Nohrian food gets repetitive fast anyway… “How does that work?”

“We look them up by their surnames.”

“Are these special names?”

Leo blinks. “Uh, last names? Not your given name, but the one you share with your family.”

Takumi tilts his head. “No one has an actual last name where I come from.”

“That can’t be. Your name can’t just be ‘Takumi’.”

“I only have titles apart from my name.”

“Let’s check your ID.” Apparently finished with breakfast anyway, Leo stows his plate, knife and mug away in the dishwasher and is about to do the same for Takumi’s when he halts. “You didn’t eat?” He looks sharply up at Takumi, eyes narrowing the slightest bit.

“I… had a bad night.”

“Is the movie still on your mind?”

“No, no, it’s not that.” Takumi waves his hands in front of his chest. “I don’t want to talk about it, okay?”

Leo frowns but lets it go, throwing Takumi’s food reluctantly away. He turns around to the fruit basket and takes an apple. “Eat this at the very least.”

“I will.”

“Catch.” Leo chugs the apple at Takumi who catches it with ease. Takumi bites into it as Leo walks past him. “Where do you have your wallet?”

“My stuff.” No need to swallow. Especially Odin doesn’t seem to know how to chew and swallow before talking, so who cares in this household? Leo doesn’t comment on it, either. When they’re in Leo’s room, Leo lets Takumi have the honor of pulling the wallet out of his hoodie’s pocket. He opens the wallet and pulls the ID out. “It only reads ‘Takumi of Hoshido’.” Looking up from the ID, Takumi doesn’t know whether to smirk at Leo in triumph or glower at him because this probably counts as a disappointment. Still, he says, “Told you so.”

“Let me see.” Leo leans toward the ID Takumi holds out to him. After staring at it for a few seconds, he proceeds to stare at it for another five, squinting now, as if that would change the name to something that satisfies him. “This is bad.”

Yes. At the very least it should have read ‘ _Prince_ Takumi of Hoshido’.

“Let’s try this anyway.” Leo sits down on his bed, opening his laptop and patting the mattress to his right. “Sit down.”

Takumi watches Leo rapidly tap away on his keyboard, pulling up a search. ‘Hoshido’ doesn’t yield any matches. Takumi’s stomach cramps, and it’s not the apple core he ate as well. “Nothing?”

“No. But less and less people want to be listed there, so it’s not surprising.”

The setback is still bitter. “What now?”

“Hm.” Leo leans back a little and closes his laptop. “The next best thing I can think of is to access civil registration records—if we can access them. Everyone living in this country is listed there, so it’s mandatory. The other big advantage is that we’d be able to search with first names, and these you know.”

“Then let’s get started.”

Leo’s head turns sharply towards his window. “There’s also a disadvantage to it: We’ll have to leave the house.” It’s still pouring outside. Takumi follows Leo’s line of sight and sighs. His hair will take forever to dry, and probably stick out in weird places. “Did Niles part with one of his raincoats?”

Looking back towards Leo, Takumi shakes a head. “I don’t even know what that is.”

“That explains why you don’t have one.” Stifling a sigh, Leo gets up from his bed. “Let me handle this.” He leaves the room and knocks on Niles’s door.

A muffled “Yeah?” comes from inside.

Leo opens the door and enters the room, Takumi following. He quickly averts his eyes. He should’ve guessed Niles sleeps without clothes. At least he’s lying on his stomach and texting whoever on his phone. But Takumi could’ve lived without the vision of his butt. He stops in the doorframe, turns around and takes a step back into the hallway.

“Well, well, well, what have I done to be blessed by Your Excellence this early in the morning?” Niles drawls.

“It’s half past eleven.” Leo.

“Good morning to you too, sunshine.” Niles’s grin is evident in his voice. Which, come to think of it, isn’t as muffled as before. Takumi fears Niles has turned around and towards Leo… with everything on full display. Shit. He curses his imagination. Why did he go there? _Why_? “What can I help you with?”

“By any chance, do you have a spare raincoat? Takumi doesn’t have one and my umbrella won’t keep both of us dry.”

“Aw, I thought sharing an umbrella is supposed to be romantic.” Don’t. Please don’t.

“I wouldn’t know.” Whew. Apparently, this motif isn’t common knowledge in Nohr. Or wherever they are. Then why the hell does Niles know?—It’s Niles. That’s answer enough.

A creak comes from the bed and after a few moments of silence—Niles might finally be putting something on, but Takumi won’t risk it by peeking—the closet opens. “I don’t think Takumi appreciates my closet jokes.”

Takumi grinds his teeth. Not in front of Leo. He turns around, careful to keep his eyes averted. “You know I can hear you!”

Niles keeps going, unfazed. His voice comes slightly muffled. “See what I mean?”

Leo sounds just as unfazed, although there’s an underlying quality of him rolling his eyes verbally. “Perhaps you should just leave it be. Go tease Odin instead.”

“Oh, I will. At least he admits he can imagine himself sucking another dude off.” Takumi’s face turns beet-red. No. No no no no no, he’s _not_ privy to this conversation. He didn’t overhear anything. And he sure as hell isn’t having an active imagination right now. Nope. No. Uh-uh. “Here you go.”

“Thank you, Niles. And in the future, please refrain from mentioning Odin’s tastes and preferences in my vicinity.”

“Will do, m’lord. Have a niiice day.” Niles sounds like he’s purring. His mattress creaks.

Leo reappears immediately after and closes the door behind him. “I’m sorry you had to overhear this.”

Takumi’s face is still hot. His eyes dart to the raincoat Leo is holding. It’s black with dark blue highlights. “How can you pretend everything’s normal in such a situation?”

“I knew what I was getting myself into,” Leo answers dryly. “It’s nothing I haven’t seen before.” Whelp. Takumi better not ask any further.

* * *

“We won’t take the subway today,” Leo says as soon as they exit the house. He opens his umbrella.

Takumi’s already secured his hair inside the raincoat. He looks like a baby but at least his hair won’t get wet. “And walk instead?”

“Yes. The rain dampens the prospect—no pun intended—but trust me, taking the subway in rainy weather is suicide. It’s going to be more crowded than usual today, and if I can circumvent going there, I’ll happily do so.”

“And the buses?”

“They, too. We both don’t need to subject ourselves to this.”

Takumi nods. A little rain hits his face. Ugh. He wipes at his his face, but his hands are also wet. “How long will the walk take?”

“Hm, I guess about 45 minutes but the rain doesn’t bother me. Spending too much time in the sun, though—terrible. I might tan, or worse, end up with tan lines on top!”

Takumi snorts. He’d sure like swapping problems with Leo if things like this are his worst fears. “I like being outside, and I don’t mind getting tanner or anything.”

“It’s the aesthetic.” Again?

“Being pale?”

“Yes. It makes my skin contrast so much better with black.” Riiight.

“Well, _I_ ’ve never cared much for the rain.” Takumi ticks off his points on his fingers. “It’s usually cold, it makes you sick if you’re not careful, and my hair takes forever to day. Oh, and the rain and wind only serve to make it clamp. And that’s chilling to the bone.”

“Hm,” Leo says, “I’ve never thought about it that way. For me, it’s just water… although I can comprehend not wanting to get wet and chilled through. But the raincoat should provide plenty of protection.” He gestures at himself. “Look at my flimsy umbrella, and I stay dry.”

Takumi turns to look and gets more water in his face. Ugh. Leo’s is dry, of course. But Takumi’s dealt with rain combined with wind one time too many, and he prefers the raincoat and having both of his hands free vastly to chasing after your umbrella in the rain, swept away by the wind. Perhaps even with broken joints.

* * *

The town hall is built in a gothic style, according to Leo. You can easily see this by the gargoyles greeting the visitors. It’s a little creepy. But Leo steps inside without a second thought, so Takumi follows.

Inside, Leo gets rid of his umbrella and Takumi pushes the raincoat’s hood back. A little wetness transfers from his hands to his hair, but it can’t be helped. At least it feels dry otherwise.

The interior doesn’t look gothic, but about as modern as Leo’s apartment (from what Takumi can tell). A row of chairs with people seated on most of them stand against the walls, there’s what appears to be an information desk, and a TV displaying a set of numbers.

“You can sit down,” Leo whispers. Takumi does and watches him draw a leaflet with a number on it.

Another number lights up on the screen, and a man gets up from his place to walk into a room as a woman leaves it. “Do the numbers correspond to the numbers on the slips of paper?” Takumi asks, also in a whisper, when Leo settles down next to him.

“Yes. Unfortunately, we’ll have to wait a short while.”

The air of quiet seems to be the preferred condition as well. This is stupid. Typically Nohrian, Takumi bets. He folds his arms and stares at the screen, staying like this until their number pops up half an hour later, signaling it’s their turn to enter through Door 3.

A middle-aged woman waits for them in the room beyond the door, sitting at what must be a modern-looking office desk with everything that entails, computer and all. “Good afternoon.”

Sitting down across from the desk, Leo says, “Hello. We want to access civil registration records because we’re looking for someone and only have the first name.”

The woman looks at them over the rim of her glasses. She waits for a moment, then says, “No, you can’t.” She waits another moment. “The information is secure and protected, and not just anyone can access something vital like this.”

Takumi bites his lip. Leo asks, “Okay, then, can you perhaps look them up for us if we can’t do it ourselves?”

“I won’t.” The woman pauses again. “Is this all you need?”

“Yes,” Leo says, teeth gritted. “Have a nice day.”

“Good-bye.”

He and Takumi exit the room. Well, this didn’t work at all.

Instead of leaving, though, Leo sits down again in the foyer. Takumi leans towards him, half-whispering, “What are you doing?”

Leo turns his phone towards Takumi for a second. “I’m trying to access whatever I can with my phone. Maybe there’s an abridged dictionary online.”

Takumi sits down next to Leo. It’s probably bad etiquette to watch what someone else is doing on their phone (and it’s not like Takumi has a clue what Leo’s doing on it exactly anyway), but Takumi can’t help but crane his neck a little. “And?” he asks after a few minutes.

“I can’t find anything.” Leo sighs. “Let’s go.” He gets up and grabs his umbrella. Takumi pulls the hood of the raincoat down again, leaving the town hall together with Leo for good.

* * *

The weather is perfectly mirroring Takumi’s mood—the sky is still gray and letting rain down relentlessly. “Is there anything else we can do?” he asks, falling into step with Leo.

“Well, Niles and Odin could probably hack us in, but I don’t want us to end up with something on our records if they get caught. This would be a security breach you would probably end up in jail for.”

Takumi bites his lip. He hates this. He hates this!

“But there’s something else we an try,” Leo says. “Perhaps someone has filed a missing person report for you.”

“How can we find out?”

“Hmmm…” Leo’s arms twitch as if he wants to cross his arms, but he can’t due to holding the umbrella. “I’d access the newspaper archives. They’re located in the public library.” He inclines his head towards Takumi. “While we’re there, we could also look for a book or two for you to pick up on my card. Your mood has visibly deteriorated.”

“Sure.” He can’t think about reading for fun at the moment.

Leo frowns but presses on.

They pass most of the way in silence. Only when the library building comes into sight, does Leo speak again. “Accessing the archives from the library is easy enough with my student ID card.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. I study history. I’ve done this before, although I haven’t looked for missing persons as of yet.” Entering the building, he puts away his umbrella, ad Takumi lifts his dripping hood. “I’d suggest looking through the missing person reports after a general search for your name. Do you want to watch or browse the shelves instead?” Leo asks as they climb the stairs to enter the library proper.

Takumi shakes his head. Droplets fly from his raincoat. Ugh, way to make him feel like a wet dog. “No. I’d rather watch.”

It’s painful. Takumi’s heart throbs as he watches Leo type in his name at one of the archive computers and draws a blank. Leo doesn’t curse but the look he shoots the computer makes it seem as if it’s the machine’s fault and it had better make up to him _quick_. However, Leo quickly recovers and instead browses the missing person reports in general. He restricts them to Takumi’s parameters—male, 160 to 170 centimeters tall, between 15 and 25 years old, Asian (huh). Only one report comes up on screen. “It says the missing man in question is a Chinese exchange student.”

“Okay.”

Leo clicks on the article. It comes with a photo of the missing person, and the man looks nothing like Takumi. Still, Leo scrolls ahead and skims the article. “He wound up missing for no apparent reason.”

“It’s not me anyway.” Another dead end.

“I’m sorry.” Leo looks up from the screen. His eyes are dark, and he genuinely looks the part.

“It’s not your fault.”

Leo nods, standing up. “Do you want to browse the books?”

“No.” This is the last thing on his mind, and anyway, he’s got enough books to read through back at Leo’s. “Let’s go.”

* * *

On the way to Leo’s home, Takumi stays silent, lost in his thoughts. Leo doesn’t prod him, and neither does he speak about anything. The sound of the rain and the cars is all Takumi listens to on the way.

As soon as they enter Leo’s apartment and get rid of their wet umbrella and raincoat, respectively, as well as their sodden shoes, Takumi comes to a decision. He pulls Leo by the sleeve into his room and closes the door. “I’m sorry,” he mumbles, lips barely parting for the words, gaze fixed on the floor, before latching onto Leo and crying into his shoulder. Nothing they try goes anywhere, and they know as much about his situation as they did before they tried anything out. And worst of all is the feeling of being all alone here—neither his family nor the two people he calls his friends back home can be found here. Is that too much to ask for?

As Takumi’s clutching at Leo as if his life (or at least his balance) depends on it, Leo wraps his arms around Takumi. He just stays there without reacting beyond his gesture, not saying anything, holding Takumi close and letting him cry it all out.

In-between his sobs, Takumi manages to stumble over his words, mumbling, stuttering, sobbing, clenching his teeth as hard as his fingers. The gist of it is this: “Everything is… _pointless_. We’re running in circles. We’re not any closer to finding out anything about me or my… my friends, my siblings than we were two weeks ago. And to be honest? I don’t think we will. I’ll be stuck here forever and never see them again. Never. And I hate it. I hate it so much.”

Meanwhile, Leo’s buried one of his hands in Takumi’s hair and started to gently massage his scalp. It feels… better than expected, somehow, and it helps Takumi to calm down enough not to keep wailing like a ghost. “You know what I think?” Leo asks, voice soft and quiet and reassuring. “I sincerely believe that everything is going to work out one way or the other in the end.”

Takumi doesn’t respond verbally, just sniffles and hums weekly. His throat hurts, swollen from the inside and making it hard to breathe. At least his eyes are getting dryer by the minute. Leo keeps cradling him for a while, the two of them just standing more or less silently, Takumi still holding onto Leo, arms wrapped around the other man’s chest and back.

Eventually, Leo breaks the silence by whispering, “Let me make beef stew for you. This always makes me feel better when I’m down.” Hard to imagine he ever feels bad about himself.

Takumi reluctantly lets of of Leo, wipes his eyes on his sleeve and nods. “I don’t trust my voice,” he croaks in a whisper, managing not to have his voice betray him and crack although it’s an effort. His eyes probably look as puffy and red as they feel, and Takumi’s vision is having a white blur at the edges as if he’s just woken up.

“You don’t have to speak,” Leo answers, speaking a little louder than before although his voice still has the quality of a whisper.

The moment Leo and Takumi leave Leo’s room to cross over to the kitchen, Odin comes home. Of course, his timing couldn’t have been better. “Hello,” he hollers with a big grin on his face. That fades as he catches sight of Takumi and, concern evident on his face and in his voice, he asks, “What’s wrong?”

Takumi takes a sharp breath. He doesn’t think he can speak yet and pretend everything’s fine. “He can’t talk about it,” Leo interjects. Thank him.

“Oh. I guess I’ll leave you two to it. Uh, I’ll be in my room.” Takumi watches him close the door to his room behind him. He can’t voice his gratefulness for the apparent understanding at the moment, but he will.

Following Leo into the kitchen, Takumi sit down at the table, content with watching Leo work. “Do you want to talk about anything?” Leo asks, but lets it go when Takumi shakes his head. He can’t manage any more at the moment.

And anyway, it’s kind of entrancing, watching Leo rhythmically chop the greens and other veggies along with the meat. It looks like he knows what he’s doing, so the dish should turn out to be good. And Leo must be taken up in his work as well, since he starts humming softly while he prepares everything.

After having dumped everything in a pot with boiling water, Leo seasons the stew, then sits down across from Takumi. “It needs to cook for half an hour.”

Takumi half mouths, half whispers, “I don’t want to talk.”

“Well, then, I could read for you instead if you’d like?”

Takumi nods. “I’ve started another one of your books.”

“Okay. I’ll be right back.” Leo fetches said novel from his room and begins reading to Takumi from the point he stopped at.

Leo’s voice is soft when he’s reading, and Takumi loses himself soon enough in the story. He doesn’t notice how time flies because it turns out being read to is a wonderful distraction he’s forgotten all about—he hasn’t experienced this since he was a little kid and couldn’t read for himself yet.

But, suddenly, the alarm on Leo’s phone goes off, signaling that the stew is done. Leo turns off the alarm, starts the paragraph he was at from the beginning and reads it to the end before sticking a post-it at the place where he left off. He hands the book to Takumi and gets up to set the table and serve both of them a bowl of stew.

“My favorite dish,” Leo says, sitting down and handing Takumi a spoon. “I hope you’ll enjoy it and maybe even like it just as much as I do.”

Takumi manages a smile. “Thank you.” His first, careful sip from his spoon simply tastes _fantastic_. He looks up at Leo and can see in his smile the praise comes across through his expression alone.

* * *

After having eaten, the two of them return to Leo’s room. In front of Leo’s door, however, is a little cardboard box that looks self-made (but well-made all the same), with a little note stuck to it: “To Takumi. I hope you’ll feel better soon. Odin Dark”. He even drew a simple flower.

Takumi smiles and feels tears well up in his eyes again. He’s too emotional and shaky at the moment to properly thank Odin for his gift, whatever it turns out to be. It’s at the very least thoughtful and Takumi didn’t expect anything like this.

“Take it inside,” Leo says and Takumi does. Closing the door behind them, Leo sets Takumi’s book back on the mattress. “What do you want to do now?”

“I don’t know.”

“Then what about watching a movie again? Albeit one that’s not scary. We can get comfy in our pajamas and snuggle under the blankets, similar to yesterday. But with a movie that isn’t scary,” Leo stresses a second time.

“Okay, but I’ll need a shower first.”

“This is a good idea.” Leo nods to himself. “I’ll take one right after you, if that’s okay?”

Takumi nods. “I can continue the book a little in the meantime.”

That’s what they do. When Leo returns to his room, Takumi’s sitting on his bed and leaning against the wall with his back, engrossed in the book. He moves the post-it only after Leo’s stayed quiet for a while and successfully unnerved Takumi this way.

When Takumi looks up at Leo, he sees him holding a tray with two cups and a tea can. “You already know I’m not too big on tea, but I’ll make do.” He even manages a smile that looks too sincere to be merely polite.

Takumi’s heart skips a beat—he’d never expect Leo to go out of his way like this. Rasping a rather weak, “Thank you,” Takumi closes the book and, after checking with Leo, who’s setting the tray on the nightstand next to the bed, places the book on Leo’s desk.

Meanwhile, Leo starts up his laptop, turns off the lights, and lights up that horrible skull again before making himself comfortable in bed. He’s lying on his stomach and pulls his blanket over himself, nestled against the wall. Takumi claims the same space for himself as the day before, copying Leo by pulling his blanket up to and over his shoulders. Only Takumi’s head is sticking out, and his hands snake out with Odin’s box.

Leo clicks on pictures and presses letters on the letter board. “Are you feeling any better at the moment?”

“The distraction’s helping so far, but I probably need a good night’s sleep to fix myself.” Only if there weren’t his persistent nightmares… They will prevent Takumi from doing just that—catching a good night’s sleep—for good. But Leo doesn’t need to know Takumi’s suffering from insomnia in this world, on top of all his other problems. Maybe this is one that will go away by itself. Maybe.

“Is the inability to see your family and friends the reason you spilled some tears a few days ago as well?” Leo asks while handing Takumi a steaming cup of tea to warm his hands with.

Takumi swallows. So Leo _did_ notice after all. Well, there’s nothing to lose. “Yes,” he admits, “same reason.”

Leo reluctantly reaches out to Takumi. “If I’d known—and I should have guessed—I’d have said something sooner.”

“It’s fine. It’s not like you could have done something to change the situation anyway.” Talking about this still sucks, though. There’s no point talking about it, and it’s making Takumi go through all these terrible feelings again. “What about the movie?”

“Right. Let’s get started.”

During the movie—something with handdrawn, singing animals in a world that looks neither like Takumi’s home nor this Leo’s—Takumi opens the box. Inside are some chocolates and another note Takumi can’t read in the dark (he’ll later find out it reads, “Comfort Food (Against Homesickness)”), and anyway, he’s watching a movie. A fun one with jokes and bright colors and characters he can root for.

* * *

The day concludes without any more cuddling and Takumi’s glad about it. He’s not a cuddler, Leo certainly isn’t, either, and all it does is ultimately make Takumi feel kind of strange. He can always smell Leo’s hair and feel the shapes of his body through his decidedly soft clothes when they touch for whatever reason… So, after getting for bed, Takumi simply curls up on his mattress and tries not to plagued by nightmares.

Nothing comes to him, but this still puts him on edge during his fitful sleep. Oboro… Hinata…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next update: March 4!!


	19. Chapter 18

At breakfast, Takumi and Leo are joined by Niles (who mysteriously reappeared sometime when everyone else was still asleep and either woke up early or is still up) _and_ Odin, also up early for his standards.

When Odin enters, Takumi stands up, chair scraping against the flooring. “Thank you for your gift yesterday,” Takumi says, bowing—because that’s good manners in Hoshido, and truth be told, Takumi isn’t as close to Odin as to Leo.

“Do not humble me so.” Odin grins. “It’s no biggie.”

Blushing, Takumi sits back down.

“I spoke with Niles about the state you was in yesterday.” When Takumi flushes red for a decidedly different reason than before and opens his mouth in protest, Odin quickly raises his hands. “You look much rested and recovered today! What I was getting at is: Since the weather has improved considerably since yesterday,” Odin gestures at the kitchen window, the sun outside radiant against a deep blue sky, “we’d like to take you to the archery range again. If you’d like. Then,” Odin only holds up a single finger now, “I could confirm for myself if Niles’s claims of you being a born archer hold any merit.”

Takumi’s eyes dart to Leo. “Go with them,” he says. “And don’t look to me for permission. I gave you a key for a reason.”

And his cheeks flare up again. What is it with him today? Turning towards Odin, Takumi aims for a grateful smile. “I’d very much like to.”

“Then that’s settled!” Odin says. “But there’s still another thing I have to tell you. Or no, _show_ you.”

“Oooh,” croaks Niles. He has his Cheshire cat grin on his face when Takumi turns his head to shoot him a dirty look.

* * *

After breakfast, Odin grabs Takumi by the shoulder (ugh) and steers him into his room. “You’re going to be _sooo_ amazed!” he says for the umpteenth time. Takumi’s lost count.

Odin’s room is cluttered and by far the most untidy one in the apartment. At the sight Takumi’s glad his cleaning duties don’t encompass the rooms of Leo, Niles, and especially Odin. Or, well, who knows what Niles has lying around in his room… Takumi shudders.

Anyway, in Odin’s room, there’s stuff _everywhere_. Weird collections of plastic figures and thick, leather-bound tomes share several shelves. Three heaps of probably not fresh clothes litter the room, one of them on Odin’s desk chair. There are posters and scrolls and photos plastered onto every available surface space of the walls. Odin also owns at least 20 stuffed animals, seven pillows, three blankets, and one long pillow with the picture of a person drawn on it. Okay.

Odin also has a private TV and a computer coming with various extra parts Takumi doesn’t understand. It looks more like a tiny building compared to Leo’s sleek laptop, and has cables with things attached to them coming out of it. Well, Takumi doesn’t have to understand. He’s actually a little proud of himself for knowing that this thing is a computer, too…!

And he’s still stunned and overwhelmed by Odin’s sudden gesture. Stepping into his room, taking it all on, he asks, “What’s going on?”

“Remember I told you I wanted to introduce you to my Yu-Gi-Oh! card collection? Fret no more! Your patience is going to bear fruit this very instant!” Odin pulls a massive folder out of one of his shelves and hands it to Takumi. “See for yourself.”

Making sure he’s not going to squish anything, Takumi sits down on Odin’s bed and opens the folder. The names of the cards are certainly impressive and a great influence (or at least guide) for Odin. And many of the designs are pretty neat. Unfortunately, Odin’s ensuing rambling about the quality of the show isn’t.

After a while, Odin shuts his mouth and sits down next to Takumi. He hums under his breath, sometimes commenting on a particular card’s worth. Which are different depending on whether you strive for a complete collection or build a good deck for games.

“Ah, finally.” Odin taps on the new page of cards Takumi’s just turned to. “An elf.” Now he taps on a card. On the picture is a man with blond hair and pointy ears brandishing a sword. “You should do some catching up.” Odin gets up again and dumps three books into Takumi’s lap.

“What’s this?” Takumi pushes the folder with cards away to take a look at the books. One of them looks like a compendium of some sort while two are novels.

“Elves! You have to know why they’re cool.”

Ugh. Takumi’s never going to live it down, is he? He’s glad he put his hair in a bun this morning. But hey, more books! “Uh, thanks.”

* * *

Niles is already in full outdoor gear by the time Takumi’s allowed to leave Odin’s room, books in hands. “How come I’m the one with the most clothes on?”

An image from the day before flashes through Takumi’s head. He’d very much like to banish the sight of Niles’s bare ass from his memory.

“Blink and you’ll miss my magical transformation into my fully costumed form!” With that, Odin slams the door behind him.

Niles’s eye drifts towards Takumi. “Leo’s already left and we should get going, too. That is, if we don’t want to stay and get cozy with each other…” A sleazy grin forms on his face.

“Be ready in no time!” Takumi leaves for Leo’s room and gets dressed. When he reenters the hallway, Odin’s finished, too, and the three of them leave.

Now that he’s outside, breathing fresh air, Takumi remembers. “Odin. Can I ask you something?”

“Sure! I love being asked questions.”

Niles purrs. “We should play 20 questions, then.”

Ignore him, Takumi. Just ignore him. “How did you know I was homesick yesterday? You wrote as much in your note.”

Odin’s eyes dart to Niles, who seems more interested in what’s happening on his phone’s screen than in Takumi’s question. Wow. He can lose his interest awfully fast. Eyes back on Takumi, Odin says in a hushed voice, “Well, you did appear out of nowhere, and you don’t seem to be able to get back to wherever you’re from. From that and your earlier statement when we spent the day gaming I concluded you’re homesick.” And hit the nail on the head. “And,” he says in an even smaller voice, leaning down to ‘whisper’ in Takumi’s ear (with Odin’s no-indoor voice, no ess), “I can sympathize with your homesickness. I’ve felt the same many a night, and it never goes quite away. But with time, it gets easier to deal with.”

Takumi doesn’t know what to say to that. He wants it to get better, and he wants the pain to be gone. But, he admits to himself, he doesn’t want to lose what he’s gained here, even if it’s so little. He’s always had a hard time making friends and feeling worthy of their time, and gaining not one, not two, but three friends in one go is more than he could ever have hoped for. And, of course, he can finally see past the Hoshidan and Nohrian divide. It makes Takumi wonder—what if, in his world, they put their differences aside and worked together instead of against each other? Could they overcome their mutual hatred and in a shared effort build a world of peace instead?

Lost in his thoughts, Takumi doesn’t even notice the bus ride, much less their arrival at the archery practice range. There are several other people about who Niles greets, and Odin (eagerly) and Takumi (reluctantly) follow suit.

When they’re putting on their gear, Takumi notices Odin strapping on a set, too. “You, too?”

“Yes! How can I sit idly by and watch you present your magnificent abilities when I could participate myself?”

Takumi raises his eyebrows. Niles shoots him a cheeky grin. “You should try and impress Odin with your skills.”

After fetching bows and arrows, they walk out onto the range. Takumi doesn’t like how both Niles and Odin walk a little slowlier than him to make him walk in the front. “What’s gotten into you?”

“You’ll have to go first, of course,” Niles drawls.

No pressure. None at all. Takumi sighs but gets ready in front of one of the targets, nocks back an arrow, and shoots true.

Odin whistles. Niles takes up stance next to Takumi and Odin is fast forgotten. “Are you planning on staying in Leo’s room forever?” Niles asks after the third bout of back-and-forth with Takumi. “I totally get sharing a bed is nice—”

“We’re _not_ sharing a bed!” Takumi’s voice comes out louder than intended, as witnessed by the sudden silence following his statement. Everyone on the archery range stopped what they were doing to look at Takumi. An angry flush colors his cheeks.

Throwing up his hands (one still holding the bow), Niles says, “You should know by now I’m just teasing. Although,” Niles holds his chin with his free hand, “it wouldn’t be too far-fetched, too outlandish.” His eye fixes on Takumi who’s quietly seething a mantra consisting of only one word: stop. “Leo’s into long hair, and even when yours is in a high ponytail, it reaches down to your lower back.”

Takumi grinds his teeth. So far, Odin hasn’t mentioned elves again, but who knows how long his luck will last?

Not long, as it turns out: Before Takumi can come up with an adequate rebuttal, Odin says, “Takumi, you definitely have to join my pen-and-paper group. You would make _such_ a good elf! You’re even proficient in archery, like any good elf should be.”

Waving his hand at Odin, Niles clucks his tongue to catch Takumi’s attention. “I was about to say you can earn a little money on the side if you want to. There’s an opening for a job here. You can train the newbies once a week, so it won’t amount to much, but it’s a start. Right?”

Odin forgotten, Takumi is a little taken aback at the sudden news. Financial independence from Leo? This might just be the first step in the right direction. “That sounds awesome!” a grin tugs at the corners of his mouth and he doesn’t stop it from spreading. “What will I have to do to get this job?”

“I’ll recommend you, then you’ll only have to speak with the boss. But, trust me, she likes me,” Niles winks (or blinks), “so you’ll just have to impress her with your skills.” He grins cheekily. “Your archery skills, of course. And I don’t think _that’s_ going to be a problem.”

“That’s all?”

“Well, maybe she’ll want to see papers about your education and everything. If we can’t salvage any from anywhere, Odin and I are very adept at forgeries.” Niles is definitely winking, not blinking.

Takumi doesn’t know what to think about this—he knows he’s supposed to feel forging papers is a bad thing but if at least two of his three new friends think it’s fine, it’s bound to be okay. And it’s not like Leo sounded completely opposed to fake documents yesterday. And Takumi wants to be part of the group. And he desperately wants to make his own money. And if this is what it takes… “Thank you.”

Turning back to the already-forgotten Odin reveals a fact Takumi’s already expected: Odin, it turns out to the big surprise of no one, sucks at archery. He doesn’t even hit the target once in the time Takumi observes him, even after reducing the distance. And he’s been watching for quite some time, because Niles has since gone off to who-knows-where.

“Do you need help?” Takumi asks when he can take this sorry display no longer.

Odin turns to him, a big smile accompanying the twinkle in his eyes. “Oh, please! It looks so easy when you or Niles do it, but I’m hopeless!”

“Nah, I wouldn’t call it that.” Takumi picks up his practice bow. “Copy me. You’re holding the bow a little awkward.” Walking up to a free target, Takumi takes his stance. “You stand like this, draw the string like _this_ , and voila!”

It takes a little more than just copying him, but with a little readjusting and patience, Odin eventually starts hitting the target, even if not bullseye.

They keep doing thing until Niles returns, asking, “Seeing you like this, I remember I still owe you dinner.”

“Oh, right.” Takumi’s forgotten all about it.

“When do you plan on having me cook for you? I’d rather have it out of the way before I forget again. Perhaps you’re someone who lets debts accumulate.” There’s his trademark grin again.

Odin sniffs the air. “I smell a date.”

Takumi closes his eyes, fuming in silence. Niles laughs, saying. “I wish, but unfortunately I don’t strike his fancy.” Takumi grinds his teeth. “See?”

“Then how come? You never make _me_ dinner.” Odin sticks out his lower lip.

“Last time we were here,” Niles explains, “Takumi and I had a little context. About skills, in archery. We made a bet and I lost, so I owe him a dinner. Which I’ll cook especially for Takumi—and myself, of course—so no freebies for you. Or Leo.” Niles gives Takumi a meaningful look. “So, made up your mind?”

“Honestly, I haven’t given it any thought so far.” Well, he forgot about it, to be completely hones. “I’d like to make some Hoshidan dishes myself, whenever I have all the ingredients for that ready, but that’s about it.”

“Mhm.” Niles doesn’t probe, just smiles. It’s probably supposed to look reassuring, but Takumi can’t shake the feeling he’s being measured up.

“I’m not especially picky about food as long as it’s not overcooked or flat-out burned.”

“That’s not helping a lot.” Niles is still smiling. Now he looks condescending. “Even I am a decent enough cook not to set the pasta on fire, for instance. And please, don’t tell me I should just cook something _I_ like. You have to _want_ something. Otherwise it won’t count.”

Takumi sighs. “How about… yakisoba?” (…Does Niles even know what that is?)

Niles’s smile turns into a grin, all teeth. “That sounds more like it.” (Apparently yes.) “That’s settled then.”

“If I’m allowed to ask something as well,” Odin chimes in. Takumi and Niles both turn around to face him. “Takumi, if I’m not gravely mistaken, I’ve spotted you carrying around a phone.”

“Oh?” Niles drawls.

Takumi pulls the phone out of his pants’ front pocket. “This?”

“Yes, this exactly!” Odin’s eyes _sparkle_.

“Leo gave it to me so we can call each other if anything comes up.”

“Ohhh.” Same word, different inflection. Niles grins.

Takumi makes his point by rolling his eyes. “I don’t really get how it works apart from answering calls, even though Leo went over everything with me twice. I guess it’s just a lack of practice.”

“Would you want some private tutelage?” Niles raises the eyebrow over his good eye.

Odin, tactlessly (and Takumi thanks him silently) says, “I will teach you the inside-outs of the phone!” Niles can be heard chuckling lightly in the background. Odin tunes him out with his ravings about all the great things Takumi can do with his phone. “And,” he finishes, “you should totally add my and Niles’s numbers.” Odin’s already pulled his phone out of hammerspace.

“I don’t have a lot of money on my phone so I probably won’t be able to call you often. Or text you.”

“That’s no problem! You can always change your plan and get calling, texting and internet flatrates instead of using the prepaid service you’re probably using at the moment.” Takumi doesn’t understand most of what Odin’s saying, and Odin apparently guesses as much. “We’re going to go over it all in time.”

Takumi nods. He’s glad his new friends are showing him the ropes without judging him for his ignorance. Not least because admitting his shortcomings in the first place cost him a lot of courage. But it’s all paying off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter is set to be published on March 18!


	20. Chapter 19

Takumi’s spent the past few days reading, learning how to operate the TV and his phone (thanks to Odin), and doing a little sweep of the apartment. He thankfully didn’t find anything… offensive this time around, and he even carried out the bags filled with trash, even though he didn’t want to.

When Leo returns home from school, he finds Takumi sprawled on the sofa in the living room, working his way meticulously through a history book detailing this world’s history. Takumi’s so engrossed he doesn’t notice Leo’s return until Leo taps against the book, already sitting next to him.

Takumi jerks up and closes the book on his finger. “Uh, hi.”

“Hey. How was your day?”

“Oh, pretty good? I spent all day reading and catching.”

Leo cranes his neck to read the book’s cover. “Ah, fine reading matter.”

Takumi snorts. “Says the history student.”

“Damn right he does.”

Casting a look about him—no one else is in the room—Takumi leans a little closer to Leo. In a whisper, he asks, “Do you know how stupid it feels when your bangs grow too long and you have to live with either having to comb them away or a restricted field of vision?” Leo has bangs as well, after all.

Leo narrows his eyes. “Do you want your bangs cut? You can go to a hairdresser for that. My siblings—”

“I don’t just trust other’s with my hair.” Takumi’s mouth has drawn into a thin line. “And hairdressers have the bad habit of cutting away a little too much, especially in the back.”

“Please don’t take this the wrong way, but maybe you’re just bad at communicating what you want.”

Takumi swallows. It’s true. He doesn’t know if he’s skilled enough to do it by himself in front of a mirror. Biting his lip, he asks, still speaking in a whisper, “Can you do it?”

Leo arches a brow. “A moment ago you said you don’t trust other people with your hair. And now you want me to cut it?”

Takumi takes a deep breath. This is hard. “I… I trust you more than strangers. And I can,” he clears his throat, “ _communicate_ what I want with you. I don’t freeze up or get weird.”

Takumi doesn’t know if he just imagines Leo’s cheeks turn rosy, but the smile and the sparkly in his eyes are certainly there. Takumi can’t keep from smiling himself at the display. “Why, thank you for your trust. It’s probably best if we move to the bathroom.”

“Thanks for doing this.”

“Don’t thank me just yet.” Leo takes the lead, Takumi trailing after him. “I have shears especially for haircutting somewhere. I’ll go look for them and you can get comfy in the bathroom.”

How that’s supposed to work he doesn’t enlighten Takumi with. Takumi wants to lock the door in reflex, and has to make a conscious effort to leave it open and take a step back from it.

Eventually, Leo returns with the promised pair of shears in hand. “Found them just where I thought they would be.”

“Okay.”

“It’ll be best if you stand in front of the mirror. This way, you can always interject if something’s not right. And watch my every move.”

Nodding, Takumi does as he’s bid. “I’m a little nervous.”

Leo chuckles. “Me too.”

“This doesn’t help, you know.”

“Mhm.” Leo, shears in one hand, comb in the other, gets to work. “Is this all right?” he asks before making the first cut.

“Leave a little more.”

“All right.” He does. Whew. This is actually going about as well as expected.

When Takumi feels comfortable with what Leo is doing, he asks, “How come you have shears in the first place?”

“Oh, I got them from Elise. She’s gone through who knows how many phases, and in one of them she insisted on learning how to cut other people’s hair. And well, she gave up on her dream, crying, once she made several of her friends’ parents upset with their children’s new hairdos.”

Takumi bites his lip to keep from laughing and upsetting his haircut. “I can picture this.”

“Yeah? Anyway, I took the shears from her and I also took the blame on myself.” Wow. Takumi wouldn’t have expected someting like this from Leo. “I kept them. You never know if they might come in handy some day.”

Thanks to Takumi’s insistent criticism and instruction throughout, the result looks just like he wants it to. Inspecting himself in the mirror for an added effect of scrutiny, Takumi says, “This looks good.”

“Yeah?” Leo sighs with obvious relief.

“Yeah.” Turning to Leo, Takumi puts a smile on his face. “Thank you.”

* * *

It’s only at dinner when Leo says, “I’m allowed to ask for a favor in return, aren’t I?”

Takumi stays on edge—he doesn’t know what Leo is going to ask of him. At least he’s not Niles… “That depends on what you want,” he says, voice as guarded as his expression.

“Hm, how about I tell you after dinner? I won’t make you agree to something you don’t want to do, but now that I think about it, why not make a surprise out of it?”

This is driving Takumi nuts! “If you absolutely have to.” His food is starting to taste funny and he’s glad he’s already eaten most of it. Choking down the rest isn’t so bad.

“Someone sounds excited.” Leo’s smile turns just as vile as the food in Takumi’s vision, even though he’s sure it’s never been intended to come across as such.

In the end, Takumi can’t tell if having eaten like this is making his stomach hurt, or if it’s the uncertainty he’s following Leo into his room. He won’t have to agree, he reminds himself, but there’s still a monster lurking in the corner. What the hell does Leo want from him?

Humming, Leo goes to his music shelf. Takumi watches him. “You don’t want me to sing along to one of your music frisbees.”

Leo puts the thing in a player and bursts out laughing. “It’s a called a ‘CD’. And no, I won’t.”

“What then?” Takumi crosses his arms.

“The other thing one can do with music,” Leo replies, making sure the music isn’t too loud. He turns around. “Dance with me.”

Takumi blinks. He’s half expected Leo to whip out some abominable Nohrian instrument to go along with his bizzarre taste in music, but not this. And… two men just don’t dance with each other. It… implies… things. Leo, however, seems unfazed. Well, he isn’t one of the heterosexuals so what did Takumi expect? Of course Leo doesn’t see a problem with what he’s saying.

Leo holds out a hand towards Takumi. “Come one.”

“Why?” Takumi’s brow is furrowing.

“It feels good. It’s fun. There isn’t a reason not to do it, if you think about it.”

“Of course there is! There are several, actually!” Takumi holds out his hand to tick his points off by his fingers. “I don’t like parties—”

“This isn’t a party. It’s just the two of us.” Leo takes his hand back and walks past Takumi to lock the door. “No one will intrude.”

“You know, you might actually just make it worse by locking the door.”

Leo smirks at Takumi, one eyebrow raised. “Up for a fight?”

“I’m sure as fuck not up for a dance.”

“You haven’t given me a reason so far why I should accept your reluctance.”

Takumi rolls his eyes. So much for discouraging Leo easily. “Look, I don’t even know any Nohrian dances.”

“A wonderful opportunity to introduce me to some Hoshidan ones.” As Takumi’s scowl deepens, Leo laughs. “You won’t have to show me your wonderful dance moves. Just make some up, move along with the music.”

Well, there’s one last chance to turn this thing around yet. Before Takumi gets another chance to protest, however, Leo walks behind him and pushes him into the middle of the room. Takumi uncrosses his arms to keep his balance. “Leo,” he tries.

Leo pushes Takumi’s mattress up to his bed for more space. “Yes?”

“You said I won’t have to do this if I don’t want to.”

“Did I?” Leo turns around on the balls of his feet as if he’s been practicing this move for ages, and something in Takumi’s stomach churns. Ugh. He’s smiling at Takumi in such a fond way that it’s kinda embarrassing for Takumi. Double ugh.

But the way he moves his shoulders and hips and arms and legs to the beat of the music, although looking practiced, also looks funny, and for some reason Takumi can’t stop the laugh that’s bubbling up his neck. And Leo’s laughing as well now, and when he reaches for Takumi’s had again, Takumi takes it. Let them both make fools out of themselves. Apparently, they’re really going to have a good time, just like Leo promised.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I almost forgot today was the day...  
> The next update should be on April 1st!


	21. Chapter 20

Leo’s been gone all day, catching up with his horse and with his siblings. Takumi likes to think to himself they all have horses (and whatever Camilla has in place of one because wyverns don’t appear to be a thing in this world) and ride in a line, Xander in the front, Elise in the rear, like in a picture book. The thought is, for some reason, very funny to him. But he knows he has to keep this mental image to himself. Good thing Takumi’s painting has always been mediocre at best.

Takumi spends the better part of the day reading, and quite a few hours at that outside in the park. When he returns to the apartment in the evening, he finds both Odin and Niles in the kitchen. “Hey,” he greets them.

“Hello!” Odin more shouts than says in response, emptying two bags of yellow sticks onto a brownish paper on a tray which he pushes into the oven. “Dinner will be ready in about 25 minutes.”

Niles, meanwhile, waves at Takumi, the grin on his lips just as lazy. He’s holding a cup of coffee and leaning with his back against the door leading to a small alcove outside where Leo apparently grows stuff.

Takumi doesn’t get what Odin’s making (or… letting the oven make), and the steps seem a little too easy… but he’s hungry, too, and if there’s enough for himself as well, he’ll scavenge today. “I can eat with you?”

“Of course!” Odin sits down at the table. Takumi, shooting Niles a glance for confirmation the seat isn’t taken, sits across from Odin.

“Thanks.”

“No need to.” Odin smiles, and so does Niles.

Takumi’s smile, however, comes a little forced. He knows he’ll have to open up to the two sooner or later, and why not now when they’re all huddled in the kitchen and waiting for the oven to work its magic? Still, this is harder than Takumi would like it to. Oh well… He should start with something that comes to him easily, and is not drained in bad memories. “You two were probably wondering how I got so good at archery.”

Niles raises the eyebrow over the eyepatch and hums questioningly. “I’m intrigued.”

“This is probably something worth recording!” Without excusing himself, Odin rushes out of the kitchen and returns in the blink of the eye, notepad and pen in hand.

Whelp. No pressure. “Back home, I participated in hunting for food with my bow. So, it’s always been more than a sport to me.”

Odin scribbles in his notepad. Niles’s eyebrow is still raised. “This isn’t the whole story, is it?”

“No.” Takumi smiles a little—in earnest, now. “We don’t have stores like you do, only marketplaces. You can’t just walk into a supermarket and expect there to be masses of food packed in this plastic coating for your convenience. Commoners have to work hard for it, and especially meat is a luxury. If you want it, you’ll have to get it yourself.”

“Wow. I didn’t fathom you’re able to shoot at moving targets.” Niles grins.

“It’s easier with my personal bow. Which,” is in pieces, “I don’t have at hand right now.”

“Still, I’d love to see this in action sometime.”

Odin hums. “Documenting this just in case one of us forgets.” Right. No pressure. Odin looks up and catches Takumi’s eye. “I’m feeling a little reminiscent of home today, too.” Okay. Oookay. This does sound a little odd.

Just go on. “There’s a second reason for me picking up the bow in the first place,” Takumi says. “I have two older siblings.”

“Aw, that’s harsh,” Niles drawls.

“As if you know anything about it!” Odin shakes his head with over-exaggerated speechlessness.

Niles rolls his eye. “I thought you were an only child, too, Odin.”

“So what if I am?” Odin’s hand covers his chest. “My heart is connected to all kinds of people!”

Niles snorts.

Takumi clears his throat. “Anyway, as I was saying, I have two older siblings. And,” it’s hard to meet the other two’s eyes, “they always overshadowed me. At everything. And I felt the need to prove myself. So instead of picking up swordplay or naginata like them—”

“Quickie,” Niles says, his free hand raised. “What’s a ‘naginata’?”

“It’s like a curved blade at the end of a staff. These things are nasty—you can just swing around in a circle and kill all the horses around you, and you can attack and block attacks with both sides of the blade. The staff gives you extra reach.”

“So like a spear but hardcore?” Niles rubs his chin, eye glinting. “Hm, I like the sound of that.” Okay, there’s definitely a hidden meaning here Takumi doesn’t grasp. Forget it. Just forget it.

“Can you draw me one?” Odin asks, holding out his notepad and his pen. “Did I even spell it correctly?”

Takumi leans forward to read Odin’s scribbles. “It looks fine. In Hoshidon you spell it like this…” Takumi draws the corresponding characters. “And I can try but I’m no artist.”

“Oh, please do. Pretty please.” Odin even bats his eyelashes at Takumi. If there’s one thing getting him to do something it’s this: Make him embarrassed. Odin is too bold.

Takumi draws a naginata to the best of his ability and hands notepad and pen back to Odin. “Here you go.”

“Thank you,” Odin says before even looking at the drawing. His giddy grin doesn’t falter when he does, though.

“Anyway,” Takumi starts yet again, “my siblings excel at their weapons of choice, so I had to pick up something else. I went with a bow.” He shrugs.

“Oh, this reminds me.” Niles sets his now empty cup on the kitchen counter and turns back around to face Takumi. “You should maybe talk about your family with Leo? He’s had similar problems until he could finally work out his differences, especially the ones with his brother, and has warmed up considerably to him.” As if it’d matter anymore… Takumi swallows a lump. The pessimist in him doesn’t think he’s ever going to see them again.

“Why’re discussing my relationship with my siblings?” Leo suddenly asks. Takumi’s heart skips a beat at his voice. He turns his head to find Leo standing in the doorway to the kitchen, arms crossed.

Elise’s head tries to poke over Leo’s shoulder but she relents and peeks out from next to him instead “You better not be badmouthing us!”

“No, no,” Takumi says, holding out his hands in a defensive gesture.

At the same time, Odin yells, “Elise, my fair muse!”

Elise flashes him a cheeky grin. “That’s me.” She walks into the kitchen, holding a tinkling jar with a painting on it. She almost drops it on the table, but decides to set it down gently at the last moment. Niles pries the lid open and risks a peek when Elise isn’t looking because she turns and inspects the oven’s contents. “Fries aren’t particularly healthy,” she berates. “Can I have some as well?”

“You _will_.” Odin’s back in all his overdramatic flair. “I miraculously foresaw this chance meeting of ours. Two whole containers of _les pommes frites_ have been sacrificed solely for the pleasure of your palate.”

Leo, meanwhile, has stepped quietly into the kitchen (no easy feat what with at least three chains dangling from his outfit) and walked over to Takumi. Resting a hand on Takumi’s shoulder, he asks, “Did you have a good day?”

Startled by the sudden gesture, Takumi half-turns around on his seat to talk with Leo. “I didn’t do much, just read and spend time in the park. What about your day?”

“As you know, I met up with my siblings at Elise’s place. We ended up baking,” Leo’s eyes flicker to the tin jar, “meaning: Camilla had an idea and convinced Elise pretty much in less than a second. Arguments and protest were not tolerated.”

So no Nohrian horse adventures after all… Takumi can’t say he’s surprised but he’s still a little saddened that what he envisioned was just a fantasy. “This sounds… nice?”

Chuckling, Leo says, “It was.”

Takumi’s eyes inadvertently wander to the jar Odin is currently sticking his hand into. Niles looks over to Takumi, smirking, and comments, “He loves groping.”

Takumi realizes Leo’s hand is still resting on his shoulder and he hopes Niles hasn’t noticed yet (but he knows in his heart he has). Takumi wriggles a little and Leo pulls his hand away, looking sheepish. “I didn’t notice,” he whispers for Takumi’s ears only.

Takumi’s eyes flick back to Niles. Who’s having his turn with his hand in the jar. “Learn and see, Takumi! This is called ‘fisting’.” Does that mean what… Ugh!

“Elise,” Takumi says, trying to get his head clear, “why did you come back with Leo?”

“Oh!” Elise turns to Takumi, walking over and replacing Leo by his side. “I like it here! Niles and I are really good friends. We talk about all our problems.”

Niles chimes in, “Well, it’s usually just her having problems.”

Elise whirls around. “That’s not true! And hands out of the cookie jar.”

“But I’m always glad if I can be of help.” Niles fishes his hand—now a fist—out, smiling. Takumi averts his eyes. Elise is who he should be looking at.

She turns back to Takumi. “Niles is great! But I really like talking with Odin, too! I’m part of his pen-and-paper group.”

Pens and paper… again? “Oh?”

“Yeah, he got me into it and now I’m waaay into role-playing! It’s so fun to imagine the life of a wholly different person, but they’re still part of you? Somehow?” She crosses his arms, head almost leaning on one shoulder. Her twirled pigtails bounce a little with the movement.

“I think I get it. I like imagining myself as the protagonist in the novels I read.”

“Role-playing is even better because you can actually make decisions! Anyway, today’s Sunday which means pen-and-paper night! I came with Leo to pick up Odin.” And with that, she almost jumps on Niles’s lap. “There’s something I absolutely have to tell you!”

Takumi tunes her out. And he doesn’t have to see this display, all cozy and familiar. He misses his friends. His chest throbs.

Lost in his misery, Takumi needs a second to realize Elise is talking to him again. “—you’re still sharing his room. Isn’t that, you know, getting grating?”

This is about Leo’s room, surely. “No, no, it’s fine. I’m basically only sleeping there. As in, actually hitting the hay.”

A huge grin tugs at her face. Ah, yes, Niles’s influence is evident. “You should come visit _me_ sometime! I have so many ideas!”

“Ideas?”

“Stuff we can do!” Elise hops a little once. “I’m overflowing with great plans—”

“Schemes,” Niles interjects, grinning.

“—and you totally have to be part of some of them!”

Takumi’s eyes flicker to Leo who’s leaning against the table, not quite sitting. He nods.

“All right,” Takumi says. He’s not too sure about this, but Leo indicates it’s fine so it probably will be. And this would be something new: hanging out with another quasi-Nohrian in their home, without having his newfound friends as support. But perhaps there’s a chance he can make friends with Elise, too… She’d at least not have him mope around all day. Leo would. Heh.

“Lady and gentlemen,” Odin says, clearing his throat for good measure, “I hereby declare the fries ready.” He even bows, although his way is different than it’s done in Hoshido.

“Let’s migrate to the living room,” Niles says. “There isn’t enough space here for five people.” He grins. “Or do you like it close and personal?”

“Living room.” Takumi hates the images Niles keeps feeding into his brain. Curse you, overactive imagination!

While Niles carries the first tray and Takumi the second one, Elise brings trivets to the living room. Odin is packed with salt and bottles labeled ‘salt’, ‘salsa’, and ‘mayonnaise’ (how this is pronounced, Takumi doesn’t know—Hoshidan is _way_ easier than this clusterfuck of a language).

Leo, doing nothing but walking them into the living room, sighs. “At least the fries aren’t fried.” Takumi shoots him a puzzled look. “Fries aren’t the healthiest food, exactly.”

Elise rolls her eyes. “Leo. They won’t hurt you if you only eat them this one time.”

It takes a while for him to relent. He sits down between Takumi and his sister on the sofa, with Niles and Odin making up the edges of their little party, and watches them eat for a while before he finally gives in and pops a few fries in his mouth.

* * *

After dinner (it wasn’t so bad but it wasn’t exactly good, either—typically Nohrian), Odin and Elise get ready for their pen-and-paper group. “Do you want to come along with us?” Odin asks, tying his shoes in a certainly creative fashion.

Takumi thinks this through. The alternative would be to stay and watch yet another movie with Niles and Leo, and knowing them, they’ll pick something either sexually or otherwise perverted. It should be a no-brainer. “When would we be back?”

“Surely not before midnight.”

Takumi catches Leo’s eye. “Sneak in, quietly, and it’ll be okay.” Takumi is already smiling when Leo adds, “If it’s just this once. Otherwise, you’ll have to get acquainted with the couch in a horizontal manner.”

Niles helpfully chimes in, “I can help with that!”

Takumi’s already at the door, slipping into his pair of shoes. “I’ll tag along.”

Elise jumps with joy. “Yay!”

* * *

Of course they take the subway. It’s not even a question. Because Elise and Odin don’t know that Takumi has _issues_ and _problems_ with it.

His eyes dart around. There’s no Leo to hold onto and he doesn’t want to give Odin or Elise a wrong idea. So all he does is clench his fists, tucked away in his sweater’s pocket.

“I don’t think he has a ticket,” Odin says as they’re waiting on the platform plagued with people. His voice sounds like it’s coming from far away, but in his tunnel-vision gaze, Takumi can make him out standing next to him. “No money, either.”

“What? And you remember this only now?” Elise’s face swims before Takumi’s eyes. They focus on it. “Is this true?”

Not trusting his voice—he’s shaky enough—Takumi nods.

Elise rolls her eyes. “Odin! How can you be so forgettable?” She pats Takumi’s shoulder, making him flinch. “Don’t worry. I’m gonna pay for your fare this time.”

“Thanks,” Takumi presses out between lips almost shut. Yes, there _are_ less people about than on a Friday afternoon, but that doesn’t mean a lot when the number amounts to still-too-fucking-many. Takumi doesn’t like this. At all. He tries to shove his fists deeper into his sweater’s pocket and squares his shoulders when the train arrives in the station. Here goes nothing.

What doesn’t help is Odin trying to make smalltalk with both him and Elise during the ride. For the most part, Takumi can stay quiet and just tune out everything around him—including Odin and Elise, but also all the other people about—but every once in a while, Elise asks, “Takumi, are you listening?” Or, “Don’t you agree?” Or, “You’re not thinking about something else, are you?”

That’s fine, though: A nod, a more or less confident smile, and she’s satisfied.

Odin, on the other hand, has more complex questions. “You _will_ play an elf, won’t you?”

Ughhh, will he shut up about it! Takumi grits his teeth. “I don’t know yet.” In fact, he doesn’t know a whole lot about this alleged game safe for what he concluded from what he’s heard so far: You pretend to be someone you’re not in real life. Then you have adventures with other people who do the same thing, but it’s all just in your head. “I don’t really know what the game is about, to be honest.”

Odin’s jaw looks like it wants to crash into the floor, his mouth hanging wide open in a caricature of shock Takumi can’t take seriously. “What?! I’ll give you a quick run-down.” And with this, Odin latches into an explanation lasting as long as the ride on the subway and their resurfacing from the station to level ground. Every now and then, Elise chimes in with additions, comments, and other tidbits of information. Takumi’s head is spinning.

At least it takes his mind off the subway problem. Mostly. His hands are still buried deep in his sweater, and his eyes can’t help put dart around, searching strangers’ faces and looking for possible escape routes. He’s glad he’s survived this one ride. How is he going to make it back?

It’s only a two minute walk from the subway station to the apartment complex Odin and Elise—and the rest of the group—have their pen-and-paper sessions in. Takumi doesn’t know whether to feel relieved or disappointed when he finds he doesn’t recognize any of the people already gathered around the table, and none of the ones arriving after them.

While Odin introduces him (and Takumi to the other players, as well) and reviews his script to accommodate another player character, Elise hands Takumi a slip of paper and a pen. Ah. Ahhh.

“This is for your character,” she says. Her eyes flick to a preoccupied Odin. “You don’t have to be an elf, just because Odin says so.”

“It’s fine with me, actually, as long as Odin shuts up about my hair.” Takumi rolls his eyes.

Elise giggles. “Perhaps he’s just fascinated with it. I know how much time and care flows into having long hair. Oh, we should totally style yours! Which hairstyles do you have experience with?”

The line of questions does get them a little distracted and off-track, but they still manage to make a character for Takumi (and yes, it’s an elf). Then the game resumes. Takumi soon gets lost in it, drinking one canned beer offered after another…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll be back with the next chapter on April 15!


	22. Chapter 21

…And the next thing Takumi knows is that he’s waking up with the worst headache he’s ever had on the sofa in the living room of Leo’s shared apartment, wearing the sweaty clothes from the day before, mouth dry as sand, breath tasting sour, hair plastered onto his face. He combs it away with just as sweaty fingers. In one word, he feels _gross_.

Not as bad as when he was living on the streets but this comes close.

Getting to his feet, he’s so dizzy he sits right back down. Only now does he notice a glass of water on the table. There’s a small square note with possibly the worst handwriting he’s ever had the pleasure to read—and he dealt with Hinata’s Hoshidan poor excuse for script—saying (after getting another headache just from deciphering the text), “Call me when you’re up. Odin Dark”. Was his handwriting this bad on the get-better-soon note or did he have a headache when writing this as well? Or, knowing Odin, he used his non-dominant hand.

Anyway. Right. Takumi has Odin’s phone number now… But before placing the call, he empties the glass of water.

After successfully navigating the phone menu to call him, Odin picks up on the first ring (or more like, peep). “Oh, Takumi.”

“Hey.”

“Hi. How are you feeling?” Odin sounds concerned, and not in his over-dramatic way.

“Honestly? I can’t even remember how I got back here.” Takumi makes a face. “I probably got drunk.”

“Yeah, you got totally shit-faced.” Ah, the Nohrian language in all its beauty! “You could still walk well enough for me to haul you back home after our pen-and-paper session. Oh, and you didn’t throw up! That’s a point for you. But, man, next time we should count how many beers you chug back before you reach this state of drunkenness again.”

“Maybe I’ll just… not touch alcohol again.”

“Your choice. I mean your behavior might make a tale for an epos but… it’s worrying. You’re not drowning your sorrows in alcohol, are you?”

“That’s not— The beer was there, and I lost track of how much I had, okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, okay. But still. If there’s anything troubling you, _please_ talk to someone. Like me. Or Niles. Or Leo. Or Elise. Really, you’ve made a lot of friends during your time here already, and we’re all there for you to talk to if anything’s up.”

Takumi takes a deep breath. It’s hard to interrupt someone on the phone, he finds, and Odin sounds so genuinely concerned he can’t just shut him up. He _knows_ there are people here to talk to him, but it’s hard for him to open up. “Thank you,” he manages nonetheless.

“No biggie. Oh, and before I forget, there are aspirin in the bathroom cupboard, left side, top-most row.”

“Uh, Odin.”

“Yes?”

“What is an ‘aspirin’?” Still, Takumi makes his way to the bathroom.

“Oh, they’re pills against headaches. Swallow one or two, depending on how bad your headache is, and chase it with a cup of water.” Of course, there’s no talk with Odin without him latching into his persona. “And it’ll work it’s magic…!”

Takumi scoffs. “I know very well what medicine is.” Even though he’s never seen it in the form of white pills, he admits to himself, as he’s checking out the bathroom cupboard.

“I’m really sorry, Takumi, but I have to hang up now. Work’s calling.”

“Okay. Have a good day.”

“Thanks! And you get better soon.”

“Thank you. I’ll try.”

“Bye!”

“Bye.” Takumi shuts off the peeping indicating the ended call.

Pushing the phone into his pants pocket, he pours himself another glass of water and takes two of the white pills. ‘Aspirin’, huh. What a stupid name. They should be called ‘headache pills’, not some cryptic Nohrian made-up bullshit name.

The headache isn’t letting up just yet. Takumi decides to eat something to settle his growling stomach. He doesn’t feel any appetite whatsoever but it’s better to listen to both his stomach and his head telling him it’s past two in the afternoon and he hasn’t eaten anything since the funny fry things (which he, according to Odin, at least hasn’t thrown up). He needs something that’s real food.

Scavenging the cupboards, the fridge, and the fruit basket, he ends up putting oats and cut fruit into a yoghurt. Despite not feeling anything in particular—no appetite at least—the ‘breakfast’ tastes good.

Afterwards, Takumi fixes himself a tea and bides his time. He needs the slowness, and he’s glad no one’s home (at least not the rather loud Odin). Takumi treats himself to a long and thorough shower, brushes his teeth (he _needed_ this and even though the bad, sour taste in his mouth when he woke up was a clear indication, Takumi wasn’t aware of how thankful he’d be to himself after this much-needed procedure), and gets in some clean, comfy clothes.

He’s still brushing out his hair when the apartment’s front door locks open. Takumi pauses to listen. Whoever’s there is sneaky, so it could be anyone. Great.

But it’s better to be safe than sorry, after all. What if it’s an intruder who’s good at lock picking? (Niles’s face flashes before Takumi’s inner eye, and he gnats his teeth. _He_ should have a key!) So Takumi does the only sensible thing he can think of: unlock the bathroom door and stick his head out to look.

The intruder turns out to be Leo untying and slipping out of his boots. He has his back turned to Takumi’s field of vision and softly asks, “Takumi?”

“Hey. I’m just making sure no uninvited guests are strolling about.”

Leo snorts. “How are you feeling today?” He finally turns around to face Takumi. Leo’s eyes are soft.

Takumi swallows. Not because of the eyes, no… it’s just hard to admit he was so drunk he can’t remember a thing.

Leo, reading this from his expression, laughs a little and steps closer. “Want to know the state you were in when Odin got you home?”

Takumi narrows his eyes. This doesn’t bode well if he needed help for everything. “Not really.” But he can’t live with this hole in his memory, either. “Tell me anyway.”

“All right. You were practically dead weight even though you were conscious enough to declare you were this close to pissing yourself.” Now Leo’s at least not smiling anymore, and he isn’t smirking either. He looks just as pained as Takumi imagines his own expression to be. “We helped you go to the bathroom, closed the door behind you and let you take care of it successfully yourself. Then we heaved you onto the sofa together and made sure you wouldn’t be able to choke on your vomit or your tongue.”

Takumi cringes. Was he that helpless?

“You were fast asleep soon enough. Odin and I checked on you again before going to bed and praying everything would turn out to be all right.”

“Wow, thank you very much.” Takumi rolls his eyes.

“Psst. You were still breathing and looking healthy enough to be considered alive, so Odin and I went to work and school, respectively.”

Takumi rolls his eyes again, and they start hurting in their sockets. “How very considerate of you.”

“Come on, getting drunk usually doesn’t mean you’re going to die. Anyway, Niles went out yesterday evening before you came home. Has he come back yet?”

Takumi shakes his head and regrets it immediately for three reasons: One, his hair is dripping water everywhere. Two, his headache’s back and nagging at the corners of his skull. And three, Takumi’s supposed to brush his hair out and now Leo can see all the stupid knots still tangled in there. “Sorry,” Takumi mutters and ducks back inside the bathroom. For whatever reason, Leo follows him inside. Probably so they can continue talking while Takumi does his hair.

He’s not gotten far with it when Leo asks, “Why do you start at the bottom and work your way up to the top? I’ve always done it the other way around instinctively.”

“This way I can get the tangles out without damaging my hair or pulling strands out. It’s crucial if you have long hair and want to keep it that way.”

“I’ve never given this any thought, to be honest. And, well, I don’t want to grow my hair out.” He grimaces. “When I was a baby and later, a small kid, people kept mistaking me for a girl.”

Takumi halts his every movement and looks at Leo—really looks, eyes narrowing to a squint, head leaning to the side, trying to imagine it. Leo sighs and looks down, eyes closing briefly, and it’s then that Takumi notices just how long Leo’s eyelashes are. And then he notices more and more stupid things: the reddish taint of his lips and the curve of his frown, and it’s so easy to imagine it being replaced by a smirk and show well how full of himself Leo can be, the black ring in Leo’s lips catching the light just so and shining a little point of white back at Takumi, the arch of his eyebrows Takumi suspects Leo actually takes care of plucking regularly, his hair falling forward a little in thick strands with the movement of looking down, how it’s held back by the same stupid hair band Leo also sports in Takumi’s world, and how it reveals the tips of Leo’s ears.

Takumi reaches out to tug some of the hair behind Leo’s right ear, thumb brushing against his cheek, and isn’t surprised much to find his earlobe pricked by black and silver studs. Leo abruptly snaps his head up and stares at Takumi. Takumi feels his cheeks turn hot and red. Pulling his hand back, he quickly goes back to brushing his hair and pretend nothing’s happened.

“What was that about?” Leo still asks.

Takumi’s eyes dart everywhere—he tells himself not to make a point of _admiring_ of all things Leo’s eys by looking squarely into them and noticing all kinds of things about them as well—so he looks down his chest, his hair leaving wet, soaking places on the top half of his shirt. He continues brushing his hair, albeit slowly. “I don’t know. I… I was curious I guess.”

“Curious about what?” Leo’s voice sounds equal parts interested and teasing, and it’s for the latter Takumi risks looking back at him. He can’t remember if Leo’s cheeks were pinkish before because of the cold outside or the heat of the bathroom, or if he’s finding the situation just as awkward as Takumi. This is driving him nuts!

“I said I don’t know!” It takes all of Takumi’s control not to yank the brush through his hair but work with care instead. “This is awkward.”

“It is indeed.”

“Then let’s forget about it and not talk about this ever again?”

Leo chuckles. “If it makes you feel better.”

“Doesn’t it make _you_ feel better?”

“Just because you initiated something awkward doesn’t mean we can’t talk about it. I’d rather have things out of the way right away instead of having to breach the subject another time…”

“Why would you ever bring this up?”

Leo smirks. “Imagine, me telling Odin and Niles you checked if I had ears.”

Takumi’s cheeks flare up again. He grinds his teeth and wants to hit Leo over the head with the brush. “You wouldn’t dare!”

Leo doesn’t reply verbally, just raises an eyebrow, his smirk still stretched across his features. Then his expression changes, smirk vanishing, only a glint in his eyes hinting at their former exchange. “There’s actually something I wanted to talk to you about alone.”

“What?” Takumi can’t quite keep the edge from his voice.

“Your bow. Or rather, its bowstring.” Leo crosses his arms. “There must be a reason it’s made it with you to this world. It might lead to more answers if the issue is properly pursued.”

‘More’? Takumi can’t remember them having found anything of substance so far. Still, it’s an interesting idea.

“Moreover,” Leo continues, “the string looks like it’s made from some component I’ve never seen before, and wouldn’t be surprised to find flat-out doesn’t exist in this world.”

“This makes sense.” Takumi brushes the last of his hair out. “The royal families of both Hoshido and Nohr have dragon blood running through their veins—”

“What?!”

“Yes, dragons exist. So does magic. This world, however, doesn’t know any such things.”

“Does this mean _you_ are part dragon? And… me, too?”

“No, it doesn’t work like that. Anyway,” Takumi puts the brush away, “when can we start?”

Leo flinches. “Wait a second, Takumi. What is this about ‘dragon blood’?”

“It’s really not important. Legend says if you had an ancestor who’s a dragon then you have dragon blood. Anyway—”

“But is that even possible? I mean, how can a human and a dragon reproduce?”

“They transform. Into humans.”

“And they can… make offspring? Just like that?”

“Yes. _Anyway_ , when can we start?”

Sighing, Leo finally gives up. What a stupid derailment. There’s something way more important to discuss here! “You can come with me to study in the university’s library. It’s scientifically-oriented—you probably won’t find much on folklore, although there is bound to be something like it buried there. And anyway, scientific pursuits often have their roots in folklore, so we might very well find mention of a similar phenomenon to yours. You should check it out.”

“I don’t know about this.”

Leo shrugs. “We won’t know until we try. Oh, you can enter and read there for free, but you can’t take anything with you or make copies,” which Takumi doesn’t know how to make anyway, goes without saying, “so you should come prepared and take notes if you can find anything.”

‘If’. _If_. Uh-huh. So much for ‘very well find mention’.

Reading his annoyance from his face, Leo says, “You’re right. I don’t think this will get us anywhere.”

Great. At least he’s realistic and honest about it this time. “What now?”

“Let’s go to my room. I’m sick of standing in the bathroom of all places, and I need to sit.”

“Didn’t you sit all day?”

Leo chuckles. “True, but I didn’t get to sit on the subway.” With that he leaves for his room, leaving Takumi to follow.

Once there, he closes the door and plops down next to Leo on the bed. “Do you have any other ideas?”

“Yes, actually. There is a second way to go about this. How is your bow called on or channeled in your world? How does it manifest? How does it all work?”

“Oof.” Takumi leans back and sinks into the mattress, just like Leo next to him. “I have the bow itself. And if I want to use it, it just responds to my subconscious will. I don’t even have to think about it. I just get in posture, draw back my free hand and there they are—both the bowstring and the arrows.”

“Where do they come from?”

“I don’t know. The Fujin Yumi is magic, so I never questioned it. Wind magic, if you want to get really specific.”

Leo sighs. “I’m no good with this kind of stuff.” Takumi laughs a little at the irony. “I know, I know. I’m a mage in your world.”

“Not just any mage. You wield a holy tome, and you’re considered a genius with magic from what I’ve gathered.”

“Well, I would’ve noticed if I were adept with magic in _this_ world.”

Takumi chuckles. “Probably. You use your tome to impale others on branches suddenly shooting out of the ground.”

“At least my foes go with style.”

“It’s not so nice, seeing it in person.”

“Yeah. I imagine it hurts.”

“They usually scream their throats hoarse before they pass out and die.”

“Oh.” Leo’s voice loses all of its teasing quality. He clears his throat. “Anyway, I was going to suggest you try calling the Fujin Yumi to you.”

Takumi swallows. “You know why I haven’t tried so far?”

“Because you haven’t thought of it?”

“No. I haven’t tried because,” Takumi swallows again, this time trying to force down the lump forming in his throat, “I don’t know if I can live with failure. I already have to deal with so many setbacks—I can’t find any people I liked back home, I don’t have anything to my person here, I have to live at the generosity of people I used to consider my enemies—” And his throat’s closed up again, his voice going in a croak, but it doesn’t matter because he’s crying again anyway.

Takumi wipes angrily at his face with his shirt’s sleeves before Leo can pull his arms back. “You’re hurting yourself.”

“I’m hurting anyway.”

“I wish I could make it go away. It hurts me, too.” Leo’s voice is soft, and close, and his twitch indecisively before he pulls Takumi into his arms.

They stay like this for a while—how long exactly Takumi can’t tell—and he calms down bit by little bit. He’s still feeling like shit, he’s tired and his stomach growls.

“Should I fix you something quick?” Leo asks, concern evident in his low voice. His arms are still wrapped around Takumi. “We should have left-over soup…”

“Sounds good.”

“I’ll be right back.”

And Leo is, coming in with two heated-up bowls of soup on a tray, having supper with him.

In the end, Takumi’s too tired and too hung over still to do anything anymore. He can’t live with another failure on top of his headache right now and promises Leo, “I’ll try channeling the Fujin Yumi when I’m feeling better. But not today.”

Leo nods. “The offer with the university library still stands. And even if it doesn’t amount to anything, you’re free to accompany me to my classes if you want.”

“I’ll try channeling the bow first. I’d rather spend my time reading the books I’ve already started.” Which is being polite speech for: It’s going to be a waste of time, and we both know it. Well, Leo _does_ hum in an affirmative.

And, truth be told, Takumi is sort of sad he wasn’t able to do any reading today what with his headache and all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next update will be on May 6!


	23. Chapter 22

Takumi’s phone vibrates against his leg. He unlocks it to find a text message from Niles, saying, “I have all the ingredients for yakisoba now and both of us seem to be free for a… culinary excursion. At least for me it’s going to be one. I _love_ experimenting! I’m very excited indeed.”

Takumi looks up from his phone and turns his head towards Niles. Who’s sitting right next to him, and whose grin radiates smugness. They’ve gathered on the living room sofa to watch more or less disinterestedly as Odin fails to survive against 99 other players in a so-called ‘battle royale’.

Niles is back to tapping on his phone, and a second message arrives on Takumi’s screen. “We shouldn’t discuss this openly with Odin in the vicinity. Also, I want to cook and it’d be less suspicious if only I fuck off. You know how Odin is.” Oh, how true.

Instead of texting back, Takumi nods and Niles scuttles off into the kitchen. He’d rather be in there as well, but sighing, he resigns himself to keep watching Odin destined to fail his attempts at staying alive (there’s apparently a song that goes like this because Niles has been singing it for the better part of the last half hour, his voice reaching impossible heights, and giving Takumi a slight headache until he finally shut up). And once Odin finds what he thinks is the perfect hiding spot, he always comments with things like, “Thanks be to you, oh almighty Robin Hood, trickster supreme!” Or simply, “Ah, salvation!” Usually seconds before someone else shoots his character’s head off.

Well. Serves him right. At least he’s not singing.

After almost an hour (Odin finally seems to make it to the top 20 for once), Niles emerges from the kitchen. “Takumi,” he whispers, and still, Odin’s head snaps around to him. “Come.”

Takumi doesn’t need to be told twice. And Odin? Is in the process of dying on purpose so he can come with them.

Niles clears his throat to catch Odin’s attention once more. “Takumi and I are gonna eat alone.”

Odin’s eyes go wide and his bottom lip quivers. “What?”

“The dinner is a special treat for Takumi.”

“That’s unfair.” Odin crosses his arms, game forgotten. His character dies shortly thereafter on screen, and Takumi can understand the pity—Odin was finally good for once.

Niles just turns around and walks back into the kitchen. Takumi makes to join him, and Odin follows them. He wordlessly grabs something out of the fridge and goes back to the living room. To eat whatever he got himself cold and without a fork it seems. Takumi and Niles exchange a look, Niles shrugging with one shoulder. Well. All right.

“Anyway, please take a seat.” Niles even pulls back a chair for Takumi.

“Thank you.” As Takumi sits down and gets a first real view at the table—bowls and even chopsticks for two, and a little candle radiating a warm light in the middle of it—, Niles closes the door. “It looks nice.”

“Mhm. I made an effort for once. And don’t wanna spoil it.” Niles winks at Takumi and walks over to the stove.

“By what?”

“Oh, you don’t want to know.” Taking Takumi’s bowl, Niles fills it with a full ladle, and a second, of something that’s been stirring on a pot. “This probably doesn’t get close to what you mean by ‘yakisoba’.” He sets the bowl down in front of Takumi and fills his own.

Niles is right. This _is_ different from the dish Takumi knows from home. And yet, what did he expect? Niles isn’t Hoshidan, and the fact that yakisoba actually is a known thing in this world is already great enough. “It’s fine.” He should enjoy and be grateful for what he has here. “Thank you for making dinner for me.”

Niles sits down on his seat across from Takumi. “You earned it. Dig in. Or, as the French say, _bon appetit_.”

“You, too.”

The yakisoba tastes like a Nohrian approximation, and that’s all right. It’s the first real food he’s had in a long time, and it tastes all the better for it. And Niles turns out to be capable of making small talk that doesn’t border on harassment. It’s a good day.

* * *

It’s an effort to pull the sap back in—he’s gotten good at tuning him out, too good. Why, he doesn’t know, but he doesn’t like it when someone takes the easy way out, so he makes him watch.

And he’s back. He can feel it. The underlying current of panic that hasn’t been there a moment before, when time stood still for all sans his consciousness. It’s one of the worse abilities he’s developed, being able to freeze everything and not getting the ‘but himself’ clause with the deal. But for this it’s useful. No matter how many days or weeks or months or years he makes him wait, he’s going to be ready.

And really, Takumi—the other one, the weak one, safe and pampered in the abhorrant clutches of Nohrians, in a world full of noise and stench and ugliness—shouldn’t miss this. After all, he recognizes the voices coming from behind the paper wall, too. Oboro. Hinata. And no one else to sully their no doubt heartfelt reunion when Takumi reaches out with his bloody, battered, broken glove and slides the door open.

The conversation inside the room comes to a stop at once. In a swift glance, Takumi takes in all the room has to offer: Two futons are placed at the West wall, Oboro’s hair spilling in its deep tell-tale blue down her back which is turned towards the door. She’s sitting on the futon closer to the door. “A servant?”

She’s already turning around, revealing Hinata’s head propped up against the South wall, hands crossed behind his dishevelled hair, a bandage showing beneath his rumpled clothes. His eyes widen. “It can’t be!”

“Lord Takumi!” Oboro exclaims once Takumi gets into view. By this time, he has slid the door shut again.

There isn’t anything of note in the room, safe for his so-called ‘friends’. Who failed him when he needed him the most, who were having a grand good time in Castle Shirasagi while he had to roam the countryside and evade Nohrians. Bile rises up his throat, and he doesn’t know whether Oboro and Hinata cause it or the memories of his time alone. Or Takumi on the other side, safe but not from him. Oh no.

“Lord Takumi,” Hinata echoes, straining to get up. Once he does, he limps over to Takumi, holding his side. “Where have you been? We’ve been looking all over for you!”

Oboro nods, remaining on her futon. “Yes! How could you leave us alone?”

Talking is hard. Takumi’s tongue feels like the dead piece of muscle it is, heavy and unresponsive. At least he can bare his teeth in a grimace that’s neither grin nor snarl.

Oboro visibly flinches. “…What’s wrong? Have you been hurt, too?”

“Are you _blind_?” Hinata stops in his tracks, having made it halfway towards Takumi, to look at Oboro. “Of course he’s hurt! There’s blood all over him!”

“No,” Takumi manages, voice rasping in his throat from lack of usage.

Hinata’s head whips back to him, hair flying in a tangled mess. “What happened to you?”

Oboro sits up a little straighter. “We last saw you at the battle at the High Wall of Suzanoh. But we failed our duties, Lord Takumi… Hinata and I were both knocked out.”

Hinata rolls his eyes. “Yeah, by that stupid Nohrian scum! When we came to, the battle was already over and the healers saw to us. Told us you fell down the Wall, but there was no evidence of it, so of course we didn’t believe it!”

“It must have been Nohrian propaganda,” Oboro adds, and Hinata nods. “We knew they didn’t capture you.”

“Mhm.” Hinata crosses his arms, flinches and uncrosses them again. “They didn’t parade you around like Lady Sakura.”

And that’s it. Something in him _snaps_. “Sakuraaa!” Takumi bellows, his aching throat making the name sound demonic. He has a mission, right. He has to find his siblings.

Hinata throws out his hands in a defensive gesture. “Wow, calm down, dud— I mean, Lord Takumi. There’s no need to yell.”

“It’s the middle of the night,” Oboro adds.

“You?” Takumi says and comes no further. It’s hard to form sentences. He can’t ask them where Hinoka and Ryoma are. And it’s easy enough to see why.

This is just a side trip. Something you don’t do when you’re on a stealth mission, infiltrating your own home because everyone has to think you dead. Or the Nohrians will come. Or _He_ will completely take over but this might just be it, this might be good. He has to lose control.

Yes, lose it. Let loose. Yes. Lose. Loose. Lose. Loose. Laughter bubbles up in Takumi’s throat.

Oboro can’t know his hearing has improved tenfold as she whispers to Hinata, “Is he losing it?”

Yes, he’s letting it loose, his laugh scraping against his throat worse than his voice. He bends over, holding his stomach that’s starting to hurt worse than his throat.

A hand clamps down on his shoulder. Takumi freezes. “Please calm do—” is all Hinata mangages before Takumi punches him in the face. Hinata goes down, hand over his swelling and bleeding nose.

Oboro gasps, but falls silent when Takumi makes eye contact with her.

He should kill them both. They will talk. And that’s a big no-go.

But… the presence instilling him with fear and dread makes him hesitate even as his hands reach for Skadi. The purple-glowing bowstring flickers into life, subdued as someone else tries to fight him for control. And someone fighting for control isn’t likely to shut his eyes and run. It’s be a shame to have to wait again for such a wonderful moment to present itself!

“Lord Takumi, no!” Oboro flings herself at him, and from the way she’s clinging to his waist, he supposes something is wrong with her legs. Well, he _was_ about to end her suffering… “What is _wrong_ with you? You look and smell like you bathed in gore and grime, you barely speak, and now you raise the Fujin Yumi against us?”

Hinata gets up, nose red but not bleeding as fiercely anymore. “Yes!” He wraps his arms around both Oboro and Takumi, torn muscles still bulging. “You seem to have forgotten we’re your _friends_.”

It’s the word that undoes him, and everything around him—the embrace, the loyalty, the trust. These two would give their lives for him, and gladly. They’d go smiling if they knew it was for him. Fucking idiots.

And still Takumi can’t help but lose it. Tears run down his dirty face for what feels like the first time in a too long while. He’s shaking. Hinata and Oboro try to get him onto one of the futons. One of the morons would sleep on the floor for him.

And he realizes… these aren’t his enemies. No. The Nohrians are. Corrin is. Azura is. And he has to find his family… save his country…

“No,” Takumi manages to say, to whisper, to rasp, his throat now not only raw but swollen from the inside. He pushes his arms outward and gets his friends to let go of him. Their expressions are full of concern, but there’s no fear there.

“Please tell us how we can help you,” Oboro says, legs faltering. She’s shaking, too. Hinata lends her a bandaged arm to steady herself. This display makes Takumi weep all the worse.

“It’s… a secret,” Takumi forces out. Words are hard, so hard. “Tell no one… I’m back…”

“We would never!” Takumi’s already turned around but he can picture Hinata’s salute. How the idiot can stand upright despite Oboro clinging to his arm and his bruises, Takumi will never now.

He slides the door open and leaves. It’s the last time he’ll see the two. It’s the last time he _can_ see the two. Next time, Takumi will stick to his plan and taste blood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next update on May 20!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!


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